Old, ailing Elizabeth I is on the throne – but a rebellion to overthrow her is being plotted by the dashing Earl of Essex. One of the rallying points for the uprising will be the Globe Theatre. When the Queen learns of the plan, the plotters are defeated, and she throws Master Shakespeare's theatre company into the most putrid prison in the land. Can James, a boy actor, and the bard himself think of a way to earn the Queen's forgiveness — and be freed?