about Elizabethan Theater

1. The Theater
During Shakespeare’s Time

2. Elizabethan Theater
 Called this to honor the
queen, Queen Elizabeth I
 She loved art, music,
drama, and poetry
 She was a patron of the
arts
 A patron is a rich citizen of
high rank who backed an
acting company
 She liked Shakespeare’s
plays and protected him

3. Important People to the
Theater
 The “Master of
Revels” was the
official censor of plays
 He approved or
censored content
 A patron sponsored
an acting company
 Acting companies had
to be sponsored by a
patron

4. The Theater
 London’s first
theater
 Built in 1576
 Owned by James
Burbage

5. James I
 Became king in 1603
 Was a supporter of
drama
 James became the patron
of Shakespeare’s acting
company
 They changed their
company name from Lord
Chamberlain’s Men to
the King’s Men

6. The Globe Theater
 Built in 1599
 In Southwark (near
London)
 Shakespeare was a
part owner
 Burned down in 1613
 Rebuilt in 1614
 Torn down in 1644 by
the Puritans

7. The Globe
 Octagonal shape
 Unroofed yard in the
center
 Audience members who
paid a penny and stood in
the yard to watch a
performance were called
groundlings
 Seating capacity of 3000

8. Parts of the Globe
Yard (where
groundlings stood)
Platform (main acting area)
Permanent Door
(stage entrance and exit)

9. Parts of the Globe
Trap Door
(lead to an area beneath the stage known
as Hell)
Galleries
(3 tiers of seats for
audience members)
Study
(inner stage)
Terras
(balcony)
Chamber
(upper stage)

10. Parts of the Globe
Musician’s
Gallery
Canopy
(represented the sky)
Huts
(represented the Heavens)
Flag

11. Performances
 Held in the afternoon
(2:00)
 A flag would be
hoisted on the day of
a performance
 The start was
signaled by a trumpet
sounding 3 times

12. Acting Companies
 Consisted of 25-30
actors
 Female roles played
by boys
 Each company had a
clown for comic relief
 Plays were written
with actors and their
abilities in mind

13. Shakespeare’s Acting
Company
 Originally Lord
Chamberlain’s Men
(later became The King’s
Men)
 Richard Burbage (a great
tragic actor in
Shakespeare’s company)
 Will Kempe (a famous
comedian in Shakepeare’s
company)
Shakespeare
Richard
Burbage

14. Staging and Scenery
 Most plays lasted
two hours
 There was little
interruption because
scenery wasn’t used
 Did use some props
(lanterns)
 Setting was
established with
words

15. Costumes
 Were colorful and
expensive
 Usually donated by
rich patrons

16. Costumes
 Would establish a
character’s status
(wealthy, poor,
soldier, king, etc.)
 Was symbolic of a
character’s morality
 White = purity
 Black = evil
 Red = violence, blood

17. The Closing of the Theaters
 Puritans closed down
the playhouses in
1644
 They believed actors
were evil and immoral

18. The New Globe Theater
 45 million dollar
reconstruction
 Opened in 1997