Shakespeare and Elizabethan Theatre: Key Concepts and Historical Context

Who is Shakespeare?

Bard-> poet

Playweight-> writes plays and dramas

Born in 1568 and died in 1616 c.

Alive during the 16th century (Elizabethan period)

Elizabethan Period

During the Renaissance "rebirth" a time of great knowledge, skill, and the arts

Where he lived

He worked in London @ Thames River (work) *Theatre

Home and family in Stratford-upon-Avon

Pre goble Theatre:

Performed at INNS (hotels), it was a traveling show (limited props and actors) *outside London walls

The Globe Theatre

• Acting company: The King's men, Lord Chamberlain’s men

• Where Shakespeare hosted his plays

Other Theatres

Rose, Swan, Curtian,

Time of day

Around early afternoon for sunlight--> 1:00 pm 2 hours long

Playing flag

Was put up when a play was going on so people would know and come watch

Gallary

You would have to pay to sit there since it had a roof (upper middle class) perimeter of the theatre

The globe was..

A theatre in the round, meaning you can see it from all angles, not just the front.

People on the ground of theature

The groundlings or penny pinchers (lower class) could go up near the stage (lots of people). Now: most expensive seats!

The lord's room

raised box for wealthing nobles, royalty, and high-status patrons who paid roughly 5 pence for the privilege.

Sheakspere wrote

Plays --> Comedies, Tragedies, and history

He also wrote: Poems --> sonnets that were 14 lines long about love or immortality

Called: Elizabethan, Shakesperen or English (England)

Plays were usually about..

Familiar topics: listening was a skill *wrote to stay alive (still talk about him, therefore he is still alive in memory)

Plays Always

5 Acts

Act 3: Climax

Romeo and Juliet was a

poem and was adapted as a play (a tragedy)

Only ___ on stage

Men

Pre-puberty boys: girls (apprentices)

Minimal props

Imaginasion--> skill

Actros owned shared profits

Language tricks

Familiar word v.s unfamiliar meanings

Familiar words with unfamiliar meanings

Similar-sounding words from humor.

Types of humor

Puns and Slapstick (for everyone)

Many people (authorities) had a hostile relationship with the Theatre (council)

However, Queen Elizabeth was the monarch: She supported the arts ---> Rennesiance

few people meant

play many roles and memorize lots of lines fast

Class

Educated and intelligent (high class) - Language and play structure

- History of theatre

++Physical humor (for all classes)-Slapstick

Lower class - penny pinchers, prostitutes.

Preview

Prologue --> chorus guy (repeat and gave preview) Said the first lines of a sonnet (14) and last two lines said if you didn't hear him summarize the whole how they just watch it up there. (on stage)

Other sonnets -

Partrachian/Italian

Shakspere uses

Verb then subject

Object, Subjec,t and then verb

He used unique sentence structure to

Rhyming was easier and used U/ (5 times) Pentameter) Written in iambic pentameter