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In terms of the number of acts, which recognised Shakespearean plays are shortest and which are longest? Did the Bard favour a specific number of acts in his dramatic works?

Question #152423. Asked by psnz.
Last updated Apr 27 2026.
Originally posted Apr 21 2026 7:25 PM.

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elburcher star
Answer has 11 votes
Currently Best Answer
elburcher star
26 year member
1664 replies avatar

Answer has 11 votes.

Currently voted the best answer.
All of Shakespear's plays, 37 of them, have 5 acts. The shortest in terms of scenes are "Midsummer Night's Dream", "Love Labors Lost" and "Tempest" with 9 scenes. The longest in terms of scenes is "Anthony and Cleopatra" with 42 scenes. In terms of word count, at 14,701 words "Comedy of Errors" is the shortest and, "Hamlet" the longest with a word count of 30,557.

link https://www.opensourceshakespeare.org/views/plays/plays_alpha.php

Apr 22 2026, 6:28 AM
Philip_Eno
Answer has 2 votes
Philip_Eno
18 year member
158 replies

Answer has 2 votes.
At school, many years ago, I was taught that the five acts of the Shakespeare plays are broken down into the narratives:
Act I (Exposition)
Act II (Rising Action/Complications)
Act III (Climax/Turning Point)
Act IV (Falling Action)
and Act V (Resolution/Denouement)

link https://bhjames.com/2018/06/14/rethinking-shakespeares-5-act-structure/

Apr 27 2026, 10:11 AM
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