Loosely based on the few historical facts known about the Bard, Anne Hathaway, and their family life, SHAKESPEARE’S WILL is a lively, humorous and emotional depiction of Anne Hathaway – accidental mother, proudly imperfect wife, and defiantly liberated woman in Elizabethan England. The play begins on the afternoon of Shakespeare’s funeral. Anne knows she must read her husband’s will, but before she does, the unreserved widow relives her colorful and unorthodox life. By award-winning Canadian playwright Vern Thiessen, whose acclaimed play Of Human Bondage premiered at Signature Theatre in a Soulpepper production in 2017.

Apparently, being William Shakespeare’s wife was a pretty thankless task. At least, that’s what Anne Hathaway leads us to believe in Vern Thiessen’s show Shakespeare’s Will (directed by Mimi McGurl at HERE). And I, for one, don’t doubt it. The scene is April 23, 1616, Stratford-upon-Avon. After her husband’s funeral, Anne Hathaway (played by Tannis Kowalchuk) reminisces about her life with (maybe “without” would be more accurate) the Bard of Avon. A shy, intelligent young man, William Shakespeare draws the attention of Anne at a fair, and after a tumble in the barn, the two decide they’d better get married. Despite the age gap (Anne is eight years older than Will), they spend a few years being very happy together. Soon, though, her husband feels the call of the city, and Anne, true to the vow the couple made each other on their wedding night, allows him to go to London. That’s more or less the end of the relationship. At first, her husband comes to visit every so often for holidays and his children’s birthdays. But as time passes, he stays away longer and longer, and soon all Anne receives are brief notes accompanied by money. The family is well supported, and Anne revels in their …Read more