What's past is prologue.

William Shakespeare wrote that line more than 400 years ago for his play, The Tempest, Act 2, Scene 1.

People have set it on stage and off for nearly half a millennia.

It means that the events of the past always set the stage for the future.

It's an enduring statement that grows more relevant by the day. Back in the mid-1800s, New York City was not the international hub of commerce, arts, media, and finance that it is today.

It was a place where violent gangs and corrupt political figures ran the city out in the open, with no fear of the law.

This is the story of a time when New York City was a powder keg ready to blow,

and a simple performance of Shakespeare was all it took to light the fuse

and blow up the power dynamics of America.

On today's episode, the Shakespeare riot, this is a twist of history.

It's March of 1849 in the Five Points neighborhood of Lower Manhattan, New York,

one of the most notorious slums in the United Points neighborhood of Lower Manhattan, New York, one of the most notorious slums

in the United States.

An Irish immigrant in his early 20s named John Moore walks down the street as the sun sets,

and he feels his boots sinking into the ground.

Five points was built on a drained pond, but something must have gone wrong along the way,

because water and waste bubble up through the ground constantly.

The streets are wet and muddy, and the stench is crippling to anyone who isn't used to it.

John lives here, though, so he continues down the street oblivious to the smell.

As he walks, everyone he passes nervously smiles and nods, because John's

a known member of the 40 Thieves, one of the oldest and most powerful Irish street gangs in

five points. John tips his cap to them and walks past a row of tenement houses, wooden or brick

...