The Theatre in Shakespeare's Time
by Y08C2
Arts & Music Subject:
Other Theaters in Shakespeare's Time:The Theater-unroofed theater-situated in Moore-fields, Shoreditch-built by James Burbage-pulled down in 1598The Curtain-unroofed theater-situated in Moore fields, Shoreditch-built in 1576-pulled down in 1620Paul's-first roofed theater-situated in the Choir Singing School-built in 1581-burnt down in great fire 1666Newington Butts-unroofed theater-situated in Lambeth-built in 1586-pulled down 1603The Rose-small, unroofed theater-situated on the Bankside in Southwark-built between 1587 and 1592The Swan-unroofed theater-situated in Paris Garden, Southwark-built in 1595 by Francis LangleyBlackfriars-small, roofed theater -built in 1596-pulled down 1655(The first Globe)The First Fortune -unroofed square theater -situated on Golden Lane (Red Cross Street), Cripplegate-built in 1600-burnt down December 9, 1621Red Bull-unroofed theater-situated in St.John Street, Clerkenwell-built in1600-enlarged in 1632-last used as a playhouse in 1663Whitefriars-small roofed theater-situated near Salisbury court, Fleet Street-built 1603The Hope-unroofed theater-bear baiting arena-situated on the Bankside-built 1614-pulled down 1656(The Second Globe)The Cockpit/ Phoenix-small roofed theater-constructed in the Cockpit in Drury Lane in 1617-dismantled in 1649The Second Fortune-unroofed, brick theater-dismantled in 1649Salisbury Court-roofed theater-situated in Salisbury Court, Fleet Street-built in 1629-dismantled in 1649-destroyed by Great Fire in 1666Vere Street -oblong roofed theater-situated in Vere Street, Clare market-built in a tennis court-last constructed house of the Elizabethan order-opened by Killigrew and the King's company-closed April 1663
Fun Facts About The Theatre in Shakespearean Times:1. The Globe had three stories of seating and was able to hold up to 3,000 spectators in its' 100 foot diameter.2. At the base of the stage was an area called "the pit" which held "the groundlings" – people who paid just a penny to stand and watch a performance.3. Colour coded flags were used outside the theatre to advertise the type of play to be performed – a red flag for a history play, white for a comedy play and black for a tragedy play.4. There were no actresses performing at The Globe Theatre – or any other theatre at that time. Female roles were played by young boys as theatre stages were considered too risque a place for ladies.5. The Globe Theatre burnt down in 1613 when a special effect on stage went wrong. A cannon used for a performance of Henry VIII set light to the thatched roof and the fire quickly spread, reportedly taking less than two hours to burn down completely. After burning down in 1613 The Globe Theatre was rebuilt on the same spot in 1614.
All About The Globe TheatreThe Globe Theatre was opened in 1599. However, it was closed in 1642 due to the bubonic plague (A.K.A. the Black Plague) and heavy rioting. It was built by the playing company, Lord Chamberlain's men for Shakespeare, but was burned down because of an accident on the 29th of June, 1613. It was rebuilt in 1614 and today it is still standing, but is not available for acts/plays now.
All About The Modern Day Globe TheatreThe Globe Theatre was rebuilt in 1970 by the American actor Sam Wanamaker. It is the only only thatched building in London today. Sam Wanamaker tried to make it as close to the original as possible. It officially oppened in 1997 230m away from the original site. There are no microphones or speakers and the thatch is protected by fire retardents.
About The TheatreIn Shakespeare's time there were no female actors. This was because acting was not considered an honourable job, so no woman would be seen doing such a thing. The role of women had to be played by young boys who had not gone through puberty. This was because they had higher voices. Shakespeare himself even acted in some of his own plays, but because it was such a long time ago, it is not known which ones. The plays of this period of time were very last minute. Some actors received their lines just before the play. Some even got them as they were performing. They used a technique called "cue acting". This was when someone sat behind the curtains and whispered the lines to the actors. This then led to a technique called "que scripting". This was where the actors got only their lines, instead of the entire play. Most of this was because there was very little time for the actors to practice their lines before giving the play. The Globe Theatre attracted many different types of audiences. It brought the young and old, male and female. This was mainly because of the variety of plays that were performed there. At times some of the audience members would 'boo' at the bad characters and cheer for the good ones. The spectators had a range of seating options available. They could choose to pay the cheapest ticket and be a "groundling". Groundlings stood the entire duration of the play. They crowded around the stage. The next cheapest option was to pay a bit extra and sit in the galleries. If they wanted, they could have paid an extra penny to get a cushion to sit on. The most expensive choice was to sit on a chair on the actual stage. This may have been the most expensive, but being right up close to the action made it all worth it. At The Globe Theatre, it is believed that two plays were done every day, and that both of them were done in the afternoon. They were not done earlier because the sun was too bright. It was not done at night because there was no artificial lighting. This is why the plays were done during the afternoon.
Your paragraph here
Shakespeare's Time
the curtain