Elizabethan Theater Notes

Elizabethan Theatre

Introduction & Background
  • The Elizabethan Age:
    • Referred to as the Golden Age.
    • A period of strong nationalism, a strong central government, and greater economic prosperity.
    • A time of expansion and colonialism.
    • Characterized by religious conflict between Catholics and Protestants.
      • Elizabeth I was a Protestant monarch.
    • Known for both great achievements and significant challenges, such as the plague.
    • A time of marriage of violence and intellect like the tale of Henry "VIII bag of several of wives"
Facts About Elizabethan England
  • Population increased.
  • Average life expectancy was 40 years of age.
  • Hygiene was poor, and sewage management was lacking.
  • Largely rural, but with growing towns and cities.
  • Principal industry was agriculture, with wool as a major export.
  • Other industries, such as weaving, started to emerge.
  • The religion was primarily Protestant-Anglican, with the Church of England as the official church.
  • There was a fine if you didn't attend church.
  • Only males typically attended school.
    • School days could be long, from 6 am to 5 pm.
    • Middle-class ate a diet of grains and vegetables, while the rich ate few vegetables.
  • No sanitation in London; waste was thrown into the streets.
  • Several outbreaks of the plague occurred: 1563, 1578, 1582, 1592, 1593, and 1603.
    • In 1563, a quarter of London's population was wiped out by the plague.
City of London
  • A crammed commercial huddle that smells like the river Thames.
  • The Thames was a major thoroughfare.
  • Streets were narrow, cobbled, and slippery.
  • Houses were crammed together, with furtive alleys.
  • Chamber pots were emptied out of windows.
  • There was no direct garbage collection.
Queen Elizabeth I
  • Reigned from 1558.
  • Banned medieval mystery plays which led to creation of modern dramas, focusing on secular themes.
The Chain of Being
  • The Chain of Being is the medieval philosophy that stated that everyone and everything had a certain place in creation.
  • Everyone had to accept their place in the chain, and if the chain is broken, there would be chaos and disorder.
  • Unnatural events occurred, and storms, earthquakes, and other catastrophes were sure to follow.
The Four Humors
  • Elizabethans believed the human body contained four humors produced from taking in certain foods.
    • The medical belief influenced health, character, and personality.
    1. Melancholic:
      • Black bile.
      • Associated with earth.
      • Characterized by sadness.
    2. Phlegmatic:
      • Phlegm.
      • Related to the element of water.
      • Associated with calmness.
    3. Choleric:
      • Yellow bile.
      • Linked to the element of fire.
      • Associated with being quick-tempered.
    4. Sanguine:
      • Blood.
      • Connected to the element of air.
      • Associated with being courageous and optimistic.
  • These humors were significant factors contributing to physical, character and morality and personality, no matter how much air but one will usually dominate.
  • Shakespeare's characters:
    • Hamlet is seen as melancholic.
    • Polonius is a phlegmatic one.
    • Macbeth is dominantly choleric.
    • Juliet is sanguine.
Comedies
  • Playwrights were influenced by medieval tales of romance and courtly love.
  • Led to the development of romantic comedy.
  • Plays deal with the comic possibilities of people falling in love.
  • Mistakes can be put right, and harmony is possible.
  • Comedy can be divided into three groups:
    1. Comedy:
      • Example: A Midsummer Night's Dream or Twelfth Night.
    2. Problem plays:
      • Mix with a combination of reality and fantasy.
      • Example: As You Like It and Measure for Measure.
    3. Romances:
      • More like fairy tales that deal with separation and the reunion of family.
      • England, The Winter's Tale are examples of these romances.
History Plays
  • People wanted to know more about their own history.
  • Elizabethans believed that history followed identifiable patterns, effecting the will of God.
  • Important to examine history in order to avoid repeating mistakes and/or for making political points.
  • Themes of leadership and power are prevalent.
  • Example: Julius Caesar.
  • Still relatable to modern audiences.
Tragedies
  • Elizabethans loved tragedies, which allowed for morals to come into question and the clash between good and evil.
  • Elizabethan tragedy aimed to use the device of terror to make an audience feel pity.
  • Illustrated the medieval concept of the Wheel of Fortune, showing a central character falling from a position of good fortune to one of misfortune.
  • Tragic Heroes:
    • Characters of high birth, such as a king or prince, who face dilemmas and crises.
    • Often self-imposed, and against deal with bad luck or the result of previous choices.
    • Have a tragic flaw, an innate weakness that leads to his downfall.
      • Othello - jealousy
      • Hamlet - revenge / insanity
      • Macbeth - greed

Elizabethan Theatre

The Globe Theatre
  • Built in 1599.
  • Co-owned and divided into 5 sharers/investors, including William Shakespeare.
  • Key Features:
    • The Heavens
    • Tiring House (Backstage)
    • Upper Stage
    • Galleries (Seating)
    • Main Stage
    • Inner Stage
    • Open Yard (Standing area)
    • Support Pillars
    • Trap Door
    • Entrance
    • Brick Foundation
  • With theatre performances banned from the City of London and licensing restrictions making touring more trouble than it's worth, it makes sense that the next step was for companies to build a permanent space.
  • The Red was the first such space, adapted from a farm in 1567, but it was not a success.
  • The first dedicated theatre space, aptly named The Theatre went up outside London in Shoreditch.
  • It was built by James Burbage, father of actor Richard Burbage.
  • The areas outside the city walls were homes to criminals, gamblers, and prostitutes, but this did not deter people from venturing out and attending the theatre.
Public and Private Theatres
  • Amphitheatre-like buildings with open roofs were public, while indoor halls were private.
  • Private theatres were not necessarily off-limits to the general public; they were just more expensive and catered to a more upper-class audience.
  • Private Theatre originate indoor venues with performances lit by candle. They were often long halls in which the audience sat down either side.
  • The Blackfriars was the first of these private theatres, it had two different lives.
  • After 1608, Shakespeare's company performed at Blackfriars during the winter.
  • Public Theatres were by far a cheaper experience.
  • Entrance into the building was a penny and that allowed you to stand and in front of the stage where the majority of the audience was crowded together, open to elements.
Origin Story
  • In 1599, the lease was up for The Theatre, and James Burbage couldn't come to terms with the landowner over a new lease.
  • So, in the middle of the night, they arranged to have the building taken apart board by board and moved across the Thames.
  • The Globe was associated with Shakespeare's works.
  • In 1613, the theatre burned down during a production of Henry VIII when a cannon shot set the roof on fire.
  • It was rebuilt, then torn down again in 1644 during Puritan rule.
  • A modern version of The Globe was built in 1997 and has regular performances.
Performances
  • Flying a flag above the theatre indicated a performance was about to begin.
  • Performances were held in the afternoon because it offered the best light.
  • At 2 o'clock, there were the trumpets heralding the start of a play.
Audience
  • The audience reflected the different social classes of Elizabethan England.
  • Wealthy courtiers and merchants dressed in fashionable clothes sat in the galleries and gentlemen's rooms, or on the stage.
  • Farmers and servants shared the open standing room space (groundlings).
  • Theatres were rowdy, lively places.
  • If the audience did not enjoy a play, they would hiss or even throw fruit at the actors.
  • Sellers sold fruit, tobacco, and beer.
  • If an audience enjoyed the performance, there would be total silence.
Staging Techniques
  • Limited scenery: no elaborate sets/decor so scenes could easily flow from one to the next.
  • Used a lot of special effects, lowering gods and angels from the "heavens" above the stage, or using a trapdoor in the stage, "hell" provided entrances for devils, ghosts and witches.
  • Musicians provided music and sound effects and were seated in the upper gallery used as a balcony.
  • A curtained-off area at the back of the stage served as an area for hiding and revealing certain settings.
  • Selected props suggested settings; a throne represented a court or palace.
  • Spoken Décor: setting was created through the words the characters used.
  • Tiring House:
    • Also known as the backstage area.
    • Located behind the stage wall and the back of the building.
    • A busy area where costumes were hung, props were laid out, and attendants helped players with their backstage needs.
Theatre Personnel
  • Gatherers:
    • Collected the payments from the audience.
  • Housekeeper:
    • Theatre owner who would let a playhouse to a company of players.
  • Bookkeepers:
    • In charge of the book/play.
    • Recorded all information in his prompt copy, including actors' requirements, entrances and exits, and props and sound effects for the play.
  • Stagekeepers:
    • Stage hands were hired to sweep the stage and place the props on stage.
Theatre Companies
  • Each company had a patron who would provide financial support and would protect them from being arrested and imprisoned.
  • Each company was named after its patron; Shakespeare was part of Lord Chamberlain's company (Chamberlain's Men) and would later be known as the King's Men.
Elizabethan Actors
  1. Requirements:
    • Actors had to be educated and able to read; they had to learn their words from handwritten pieces of parchment.
    • Had to acquire a range of performance skills such as singing, playing a musical instrument, word-fighting, speaking very energetic poetry, and being physically fit and agile for the demands of the roles.
  2. Women:
    • Were NOT allowed to act onstage.
    • Female roles were played by young boys.
    • Young boys joined theatre companies as apprentices.
    • They were trained by masters and were taught how to move, walk, and gesture like women.
    • They played women's roles until their voices broke, and then they could go on to play male roles.
    • Shakespeare often voiced the fact that he had boy actors in his plays to generate empathy and humor, particularly in the comedies.
  • Sometimes the boy players acted the roles of upper-class women.

The Text

  • Elizabethans were used to stories and had a love of language.
  • Their information was given to them through spying and listening, and had to use their imaginations.
  • Shakespeare appealed to all levels of society through vivid descriptions.
  • Images were described by word.
  • The Chorus was a single character who narrated the events to the audience to make images come to life.
  • Shakespeare's use of language is exceptional and demands a great deal from the actor.
  • Shakespeare used imagery or figures of speech to vividly describe things in unusual and effective ways.
  • Metaphors and Similes are abundant in his plays.
  • Characters speak differently to suggest their character or social class.
  • Aristocrats will speak formally and poetically, while peasants may speak more directly and roughly using prose.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

  • Money determines poverty.
  • Survival mode.