Elizabethan Theatre

Elizabethan Theatre
William Shakespeares comical play Much Ado About Nothing was written around
1598-1599 during the glorious reign of her majesty Queen Elizabeth I. Elizabeth I
was very fond of the theatre, and during her reign the first purpose built theatre
was constructed, some of the worlds greatest plays were written, and Theatre
itself became hugely popular. Elizabeth I did not actually visit the theatre herself,
plays performed to royalty and nobility would be put on in the royal courts and
palaces, Royalty would never be seen in the company of the common folk.
There were two different sorts of Elizabethan theatre, Public theatres, which
were large, cheap, open-air theatres with an audience on the round, and
standing areas, and also Private theatres, which were long indoor halls lit by
candlelight, which were more expensive.
The most famous theatre from this era is of course the magnificent Globe
Theatre, the original of which is unfortunately no longer standing, however a
new version was been built in a new location close by. The Globe Theatre was
constructed in 1599 in Southwark near a rival theatre, The Rose, by the sons of
James Burbage, who built the first theatre in London. Shares in the Globe
Theatre were sold to several actors, including William Shakespeare, in order to
pay for its construction. In 1613, the Globe caught fire, however it was rebuilt,
until in 1642, during the English Civil War, when Theatre was banned, leading to
the Globes demolition in 1644.
The Globe theatre was three stories high, between 97-102 feet, possibly with 18
or 20 sides, there is unfortunately not enough surviving documentation to know
the exact details of the theatres construction. The rectangular stage could be
viewed from all sides, up to 3000 spectators either stood in the pit, or in the
more expensive seating around the edge. The most expensive seats were in the
Lords box behind the stage. The back wall of the stage had doors leading
backstage and a balcony, and part of the stage was covered with a roof.
William Shakespeare was an actor and principal playwright for the Lord
Chamberlains Men and wrote on average two plays a year. Plays written at this
time belonged to the acting troupe, not the playwright, and plaguarism was
common between different acting companies.
An audience of this time would have been very much engaged with the play,
shouting and encouraging the players, throwing things at bad acting and overall
acting completely differently to an audience of today. Throughout the
performance food and drink would have been sold in the pit, as well as other less
reputable things. This disorder means that an Elizabethan actor would have to
work very hard to earn the audiences attention to avoid being pelted with food,
and also have to speak very clearly in order to be heard.
During the Elizabethan era, social class was very important, and by law the
populace had to wear the right clothing for their status (Sumptuary Laws).
Licenced acting troupes however, were allowed to break this law when onstage,
thus allowing beautiful and elaborate costumes to be used. The rank and status
of a character was displayed by his costume and the audience would be able to
discover much about the character through this, therefore the social status of
the characters in Much Ado About Nothing would be communicated to the
audience via their attire. The historical plays often used both Elizabethan and
historicalish clothing together, historical accuracy was not considered, and a lot
of the costumes were handed down to the actors from the nobility.
Unlike many modern productions, elaborate painted backdrops were not used in
Elizabethan plays, but furniture and props were used to set the scene. Some of
these were quite fancy, and a real cannon used onstage caused the fire in 1613.
Actors hid pig bladders in their costume to create bloody injuries during fight
scenes. Props such as a lantern or a torch might be carried to signify to an
audience if a scene is set at night, as well as some characters wearing
nightclothes. The only lighting was the sun, therefore plays took place at two
0clock, and the theatre had no roof.
All Elizabethan actors were men, as women were not allowed onstage by law,
and female roles were played by young boys dressed in female attire. This
probably looked very convincing, as makeup and wigs were used by these
actors, as well as full ladies attire. England was the last country in Europe to
allow women on the stage; therefore in the original performance of Much Ado
About Nothing, Beatrice would have been played by a boy.
Elizabethan performances ran without intervals, and there were no breaks for
scene changes. Having an audience surrounding the stage means that players
must ensure they act to all directions, and face different parts of the stage.
Elizabethan actors had a very bad reputation, and were generally considered to
be criminally inclined and of lower class, however as the popularity of the
theatre grew, this perception changed, and acting started to become a more
reputable profession, however the church still retained its intense disapproval.
Bibliography
http://www.shakespearesglobe.com/about-us/history-of-the-globe/original-globe
http://www.shakespeare-online.com/theatre/globe.html
http://www.playshakespeare.com/study/elizabethan-theatres/2189-the-globe-theatre
http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/elizabethan-theatre.htm
http://www.bardstage.org/globe-theatre-costumes.htm
http://shakespearean.org.uk/elizthea1.htm
http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/e/elizabethan-theatre/
http://www.theatrehistory.com/british/bellinger001.html
https://www.theatrefolk.com/spotlights/elizabethan-theatre-part-one

Elizabethan Theatre

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