Chapter 11 Summary

Nat starts to fill with worry. He is worried because Shakespeare and Richard Burbage are frightened by the political unrest surrounding the Queens visit. Nat also remembers from Arby's history lessons about Elizabethan England that the Queen had the Earl of Essex executed. Nat also begins to worry about what will happen when he returns to St. Paul's School and nobody recognizes him. Instead, Nat tries to force the worry from his mind, and immerses himself into rehearsal for A Midsummer Night's Dream later that night.

Everyone in the Lord Chamberlain's Men is more interested in Nat having saved Roper from choking than from having assumed Roper's role. Nick Tooley, an apprentice, asks if Nat's aunt is a wise woman. Not understanding the question, Nat answers yes. After rehearsal, Nat and Harry join Shakespeare and Richard Burbage at the nearby tavern. Harry explains...