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Essays on the globe theatre history
Essays on the globe theatre history
The golden globe theatre in the elizabethan period
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The First Globe Theater The Globe Theater was built around 1598 in London’s Bankside district. It was one of four major theaters in the area - the others were the Swan, the Rose, and the Hope. It was an open air octagonal amphitheater that could seat up to 3, 000 spectators. The theater was three stories high, with a diameter of approximately 100 feet. The rectangular stage platform on which the plays were performed was nearly 43 feet wide and 28 feet deep. The staging area housed trap doors in its floorings and primitive rigging overhead for various stage effects. The original Globe theater was constructed by the Lord Chamberlain’s men, the acting group to which Shakespeare belonged. Before the Globe was constructed, they performed at the Blackfriar Theater in the heart of London. But having a theater in the heart of London was a bad idea because the plague caused frequent closings. After a year of closure due to the plague, the company stripped the Blackfriar to its foundation and moved the materials across the river to the Bankside. There, they proceeded to build the Globe. Their decision to do this stirred up some controversy because the Blackfriar was leased to the Lord Chamberlain’s Men. The owner, who had been away from London at the time that this was happening, filed a lawsuit against the company. But the company won the case and the theater. The Globe was destroyed by fire in 1613 when , during a production of Henry VIII, a cannon was fired above the stage to signal some important business of the play. The wadding that stuffed the cannon, which was some form of heavy cloth, was ignited by the explosion and shot up out of the auditorium and landed on the dry thatch roof. The straw caught fire and in only minutes the entire building was consumed in flame. But amazingly, not one person was killed. Here is the first verse from a sonnet about the fire that destroyed the Globe Theater- “A tearful fire began above, A wonder strange and true, And to the stagehouse did remove, As rouns as tailor’s chew; And burnt down both beam and snag And did not spare the silken flag, O sorrow, pitiful sorrow, And yet all this true.” The second Globe theater, which was rebuilt to be the most expensive and complicated in England ever built, was completed before Shakespeare’s death in 1616.
The theater of Dionysus stands at the foot of the acropolis and its date originates back to the 6th Century, B.C.. Its originally wood seats rise in tiers above one another against the slope of the acropolis, creating a natural setting for the plays (D'ooge, 231). The Greek Theater was built to house a drama which, during the festivals of Dionysus, had evolved from the long tradition of choral hymns which were presented each year. As Greek culture changed and flourished, entertainment transformed from being a series of choral chanting and dancing to placing an emphasis on the actor. As the actors' importance grew, there became a need for a stage from which they could be seen by each of the fourteen thousand spectators the theater housed. The chorus was still a very active part of the entertainment and they resided in the orchestra (Norwich, 64). The orchestra was the oldest part of the Greek theater and thus, when the actor was given
When the fire company arrived, everything appeared normal, as there was no smoke coming out of the Iroquois Theater at first. But when they went into the building, they could not open the doors because of the bodies that were stacked against them. The death toll in the upper balconies was tremendous, as the fire escape supposedly leading down to the street a hundred feet below was found to be non-existent, leaving some to jump or fall to their death from the great height. As many as 150 people met their fate in this manner.
idea, as they had to look down on the play. They used a thrust staging
whom the theatre was a means to get away from the horrors of the war.
Theatres and How We Had Fun." Little, Brown, and Company. (Boston, Toronto, London); 1991. P. 139, 144.
Ford’s Theatre can be found on 10th Street, 511 NW Washington D.C. It was originally built in 1833 to be a First Baptist Church. After the church had been abandoned, John T. Ford saw great potential. He was the original, and first, architect of Ford’s Theatre. Ford had huge ambitions for the space, and he was determined to make things work no matter what obstacle was hurled his way. After multiple renovations, a new architect stepped in. His name was James J. Gifford. Gifford was also a hard worker who cared about the theatre.
Flying debris caused many injuries like tornadoes. A fire storm of winds followed the detonation
One of the very first electrified streets in the United States was Broadway. This gave it many opportunities to become a large icon for our nation. As we know now it is one of the most well-known places for great entertainment. However Broadway was not always the iconic entertainment center it is today; it was stolen, had New York City emerge around it, and persevered through many difficult economic and cultural times.
The theatron was the place where the audience sat. At first the spectators sat on the ground, later on wooden bleachers and finally on tiers of stone seats which followed the circular shape of the orchestra and the natural contours of the countryside. The theatron surrounded the orchestra on three sides. Describing the theater of Dionysus, David Taylor writes, " The spectators seats were in a curving area, a little more than a semi-circle and slope down to the center" (Taylor 19). Even though all classes of people attended the theater there were reserved areas for the more prestigious, such as the king.
This new theatre was an extremely risky venture. Any actor caught performing would be imprisoned. Box office receipts would be confiscated for the Commonwealth. Enormous fines would be levied against any daring to sit in an audience. Entire playhouses would be destroyed, their interiors gutted or exteriors burned. Theatre faced extinction. It became an obsequious art, catering to Cromwell's strict moral code. Killigrew would survive, and eventually form the Theatre Royal, but he lived in constant fear. Davenant worked through legal channels to produce theatre Cromwell could not dispute. His pieces were simple, more opera then play, and propaganda for the Commonwealth. Interestingly, the first woman to appear on the British stage did so in this time, in Davenant's The Siege of Rhodes. He began pushing the envelope, uncomfortable in his new sycophantic role. He renewed his ties to the British aristocracy, exiled to France. He befriended Charles II, and when the young king made his triumphant return to power, Davenant was given the monopoly on all theatre in London. He shared this power with his old friend Thomas Killigrew. Under their guidance, the theatre exploded back into being.
Russell Brown, J. 1995. The Oxford Illustrated History of the Theatre. 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Many individuals had influence over the regulation of theater. Although naturally the sovereign had direct control, their wishes were carried out through the Privy Council, Chamberlain, Master of the Revels, Treasurer, Mayor, and occasionally the ecclesiastical officers.
The explosion caused a fifteen foot wave that was detectable one hundred miles away. Any buildings near by were completely flattened to the ground. Anybody within forty miles away their windows were shattered. The explosion was so great that it sent all of the cargo on board such as peanuts, tobacco, twine, and bunker oil two thousand to three thousand feet in the air. It was so loud that the blast was heard one hundred
2,000 Lancastrian men.” (“Wars of the Roses”) The Yorkists led by the Earls of Salisbury
Throughout history, civilizations have evolved in many different facets. One of these components would be communication and in a narrower aspect, entertainment. We will delve in how entertainment has evolved, enlightened, and transformed throughout time. Each era beginning with Thespis in 6th century BC to present will be discussed and detailed to show the impact that entertainment has made upon generations and how it continues to advance: from men being the only performers allowed on stage to women’s entrance into entertainment; performances once held in amphitheaters to now transmitted via satellites and broadcasted live in our homes are only a few of the many topics that will be examined in what you are about to read.