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Why did John Dryden and Nathaniel Lee collaborate on Oedipus?

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Poet John Dryden — John Dryden John Dryden, oil painting by Sir Godfrey Kneller, 1693; in the National Portrait Gallery, London.

John Dryden and Nathaniel Lee collaborated on the tragedy Oedipus (1678) during a period when Dryden was experiencing significant professional friction with his colleagues.12

By 1678, Dryden was at odds with the other shareholders of the Thomas Killigrew company, which was suffering from severe mismanagement. In an effort to distance himself from these difficulties, Dryden offered Oedipus, his collaborative work with Lee, to a rival theatre company. This move marked the end of his tenure as a shareholder in the Killigrew company.1