After discussing the structuralism, post structuralism, Marxist, queer and feminist theories of dramatic action and dramaturgical development, the author posits an ontological (and refreshing) vision of Shakesprean stagecraft and dramatic movement. Shakespeare as an actor and Roman Catholic is an outsider in an early modern Protestant state in the process of dynamic cultural, economic reform and political repression. These themes are reflected in the unsettled, morally ambiguous characterizations that Professor Crosman studies: Hamlet, Polonius, Macbeth, Henry V and Falstaff among others.