text: shakespeare's greatest plays were performed first in ___? a. the court b. courtyards of inns c. churches d. the globe theatre the globe theatre was not built until 1599, when most scholars agree that he had already completed about 20 of his 38-or-so plays.  there are instances of shakespeare's plays being performed in at least two of "the inns of court", which are four law schools in london: the comedy of errors in 1594, and twelfth night in 1602.  he was a stock-holder and an actor in the lord chamberlain's men from 1594-on (the theatre was closed from 1592-1594 due to an outbreak of the plague), with performances before her majesty queen elizabeth i.  this is from the-quill.com: "during the years shakespeare performed with the chamberlain's men, before their purchase of the globe in 1599, they played primarily at the well-established theatres like the swan, the curtain, and the theatre. the troupe would also give regular performances before elizabeth i and her court, and tour the surrounding areas of london."  so i suppose the answer to the question should be a).  it appears that shakespeare did quite a bit of writing and performing before the globe theatre was even built.    good luck!