In 1601, Queen Elizabeth I was forced by duty to condemn to death a man widely believed to be her former lover. On the night before the execution, she demanded that William Shakespeare's acting troupe, The Lord Chamberlain's Men, perform a play to distract her from the heartbreak that would occur in the morning. This much is truth. Timothy Findley takes these historical facts, blends in a few "what if's?" and creates a powerhouse play about men, women, fantasy, death, and ultimately, love.