William Kemp (right) during his Nine Days' Wonder
William Kemp, also called Kempe (? - ca. 1603) was an English actor and dancer. He played mostly comic roles, among others in pieces of William Shakespeare.
About Kemp's youth nothing is known. His name dives for the first time when he is an actor in the company of Leicester's Count. It is also known that in 1592 he was part of the company Lord Strange's Men.
He had already acquired a certain reputation as comic actor and dancer of the jig when joining the company Chamberlain's Men in 1594, together with Richard Burbage and William Shakespeare, who was especially acclaimed by the pieces of Shakespeare, who acted as an actor himself. Kemp played in Romeo and Juliet, the role of Dogberry in Much Ado About Nothing, Nick Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream and probably also the role of Falstaff in Henry IV.
He was one of the first shareholders in the plans for the construction of the London Globe Theater. However, in 1599 or 1600 he left the company and sold his shares, after which he began a solo career. In 1601 he borrowed money from Philip Henslowe, as evidenced by his Diary, and joined the company of Worcester's Men.
Kemp has become famous for his nine days of dance between London and Norwich, over a distance of more than 150 kilometers. This performance was interrupted by a lot of rest periods and stretched out in about a month, but it attracted a lot of interest. He wrote in 1600 a report of this event entitled Kemps Nine Daies Wonder, Performed in a Daunce from London to Norwich. Externe link
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