English Quest (Shakespeare)

The Globe Theater (706-707)

• public theaters were built around roofless courtyards having no artificial light, so performances were usually during the day

• there were three levels of galleries, poorer spectators (groundlings) stood and watched a play from the courtyard, which was called the pit

• no one knows what the theater looks like, but Shakespeare tells us it was round and octagonal

• it held between 2,500-3,000 people

• its foundation was discovered in 1990 and has revealed clues about the actors, plays, and the audience

• hazelnuts were Elizabethan “popcorn”

• the stage was a platform that extended into the pit, actors left and entered the stage from doors located behind the platform

• galleries were used for dressing and storage rooms except for the second level gallery which was used as an upper stage

• there was no scenery on the stage, so settings were indicated through dialogue, as a result scenes flowed pretty quickly

• the actors wore elaborate clothing

• the plays produced were fast paced and very colorful that usually lasted 2 hours

• the acting was made up of only men and boys; women did not perform (the boys performed the female parts

• the theater design is based on archaeological evidence and a drawing by Wendeslas Hollar

• the new globe is made up of wood, a thatched roof that protects the stage, and galleries

• it finally opened on June 8, 1997, with a production of Henry V

William Shakespeare (708) What’s past is prologue

• greatest writer in the English language

• estimated birth was April 23,1564, due to his baptism date

• he was born in Stratford-on-Avon

• his father, John, was a successful glove maker and businessman; he was well respected and a leader in the community

• his mother was Mary Arden

• no written evidence of his boyhood exists, but Shakespeare probably attended Stratford grammar school, where he learned Latin

• when he left school, he probably had a solid foundation of all the subjects

• he later married Anne Hathaway; she was 26 and he was 18

• they had a daughter in 1583, Susanna and twins, Judith and Hamnet in 1585

• some believe that for a brief time after his marriage, Will was a schoolmaster

William Shakespeare (708) All the World’s a Stage

• may have been influenced by traveling plays and actors

• at the age of 18 or 19 he is believed to have been acting in London

• his friends in London helped in professionally and financially

• soon he was well established in social and theatrical circles

• he was later a part owner and principal playwright of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men

William Shakespeare (708) Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow

• in 1610, Shakespeare retired to Stratford

• he moved into the second largest house in Stratford, and continued to write plays

• he wrote his will on March 25, 1616

• left the bulk of his property to his eldest daughter and a smaller sum to his other daughter Judith

• his kids didn’t have any children either so there are no living descendants of Shakespeare

• on his birthday, April 23, he died

The Tragedy of Julius Ceaser (709

• Shakespeare was a borrower not an inventor

• he didn’t write any of his own plays

• he picked out bits and pieces from other writers’ stories

• what he did wasn’t unusual at the time, it was a “free trade” affair

• authors were openly encouraged to imitate certain writing styles and literary models, especially the classical ones

• Shakespeare’s ultimate source was the broad spirit of the age