The English Renaissance Theatres, Stages, and Playwrights

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Recommended: An Essay of Elizabethan Theatre

The English Renaissance Theatre was also known as the Early Modern English Theatre or Elizabethan Theatre. It occurred during the Reformation and 1642 when they were discontinued. There were many types of plays ranging from mystery, tragedy, masques to morality most had a biblical themes. Soon came the establishment of permanent theatres after plays were forbidden in 1572 in an effort to contain the spread of the plague. With the construction of permanent theatres came regular performances as well as well known playwrights many of whom were well educated but some were not. This brought forth William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, and Ben Johnson.

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The English Renaissance Theatre became a reality when it was first established by James Burbage, in Shoreditch in 1576. Next came the “Curtain Theatre (1577), the Rose (1587), the Swan (1595), the Globe (1599), the Fortune (1600), and the Red Bull (1604)( New World Encyclopedia)”. Once the theatre had a permanent abode it became a very profitable venture. The theatre was a unifying experience for all who attended. Both young and old rich and poor attended and enjoyed the dramas. It was a means to spread knowledge and morality to those who otherwise would not have had such exposure. It was mostly geared toward the rich but with their patronage they would not have been able to thrive in such a society. The public theatres were built to certain specifications most were round in shape and three stories high. Many were built of timber and plaster but this changed after one of the theatres burned down. “Usually built of timber, lath, and plaster and with thatched roofs, the early theater...

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...se they had a passion for it not to make money. This means that they truly believed in what they were writing, making it irreplaceable.

Works Cited

"English Renaissance theatre - New World Encyclopedia." Info:Main Page - New World Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 July 2011. .

Greenblatt, Stephen, and M. H. Abrams. The Norton anthology of English literature the sixteenth; the early seventeenth century. 8th ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 2006. Print

Licht, Meg. "Elysium: A prelude to Renaissance Theater. " Renaissance Quarterly 49.1 (1996): 1-36. Research Library, ProQuest. Web. 1 Jul. 2011.

OUTLAND, ALLISON M. "'Ridden with a Welsh Goat': Parson Evans' Correction of Windsor's English Condition." English Literary Renaissance. 301-331. 2011. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 1 July 2011.

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