Despite advanced research in the field of early modern literary studies, scholars have been unable to pinpoint the exact date of composition or performance for The Two Gentlemen of Verona. The earliest known attribution of the play to Shakespeare was in 1598, when it was published as part of a list of the Bard's work in Francis Meres's Palladis Tamia. However, most agree that the play was written some time before that, as early as 1587. In general, the play is believed to have been written around the year 1591.
This would make The Two Gentlemen of Verona one of Shakespeare's earliest plays, and indeed a governing theory among critics is that the play was the first one Shakespeare ever wrote for the stage. The most significant evidence for this theory is the caliber of the play itself. Scholars have long commented on the play's "immaturity," arguing that it does not account for much knowledge of theatrical space or convention. The plot has been described as "unambitious," and the cast of characters is the smallest of any of Shakespeare's plays. Indeed, many point out that The Two Gentlemen of Verona does not take advantage of the theatrical medium in the same way that Shakespeare's later masterpieces do. They point to the example of dialogue in the play, in which scenes with three or more characters tend to grant speaking roles to only two characters, leaving the others to fall mostly silent.
The most recent editions of Shakespeare's works, including The Norton Shakespeare and The Oxford Shakespeare, place the play first among the others, furthering the hypothesis that The Two Gentlemen of Verona was Shakespeare's first foray into the theater (some have even argued that Shakespeare wrote the play before he moved to London from Stratford-upon-Avon). However, critics continue to speculate over the exact date of composition. The play was not published until 1623, when it was included among the works of the First Folio.
