The Globe Theatre in Shakespeare's world

Globe

The Development of the Globe Theater

To understand how Shakespeare's original audiences observed his plays, it is necessary to understand the structure and the style of the original venue in which these dramas, comedies, histories, and romances were performed. Unlike the proscenium arch theaters that we are accustomed to, Shakespeare's plays were performed 'in the round,' a tradition that dates back to plays being performed in the courtyards of inn houses (Burgess 79). Shakespeare clearly wrote his plays with an eye upon such a performance space. All of his plays rely upon a highly interactive relationship between the audience and actors, as is exemplified in the use of soliloquies, for example, where the actor is often in dialogue with the audience as he shares his thoughts aloud. The beginning of many of Shakespeare's plays, like "Romeo and Juliet," start with fights or quarrels, to settle the noisy audience down. At the Globe, there was no opening of the curtain or dimming of the lights, as in an enclosed theater. There was no artificial light at all, and plays were performed mid-day in the open air.

Elizabethan plays were staged in a very 'bare bones' style, with little in the way of scenery. This explains why scene changes occur so fast and fluidly in Shakespeare's plays. To hold the attention of the audience, characters walked on and off quite quickly and there was no need to change backdrops or move a great deal of furniture. It also explains the ornate quality of the language -- characters create the scenery with their words, rather than rely upon sets -- there were no set designers at all, in fact, at the Globe! However, plays did often use props such as canons, and the use of the trap-doors enabled characters to be 'buried' like Ophelia in "Hamlet," and for spirits and demons to come up from beneath the stage ("James Burbage," Elizabethan Era, 2008). Not all of the special effects were successful, however: "The [first Globe] gallery had a thatched roof. (Thatch consists of straw or dried stalks of plants such as reeds.) During a performance of Henry VIII on June 29, 1613, the Globe Theatre burned down after booming canon fire announcing the entrance of King Henry at Cardinal Wolsey's palace ignited the roof" (Cummings 2003).

The original Globe Theatre was a wood building with plaster exterior walls joining at an angles to form a central oval, surrounding the cobblestoned arena of the groundlings, the common people who paid a few pennies to gain entry, while the three galleries protected from rain and sunlight were for the higher-paying, more aristocratic customers (Cummings 2003). Visually, it resembled a small Greek or Roman amphitheatre, with the addition of the higher stage (Cummings 2003). The Globe stage was raised four to six feet from ground level and was covered by roof supported by pillars so the actors did not get wet during performance if it rained. The costumes worn to show that a character was a king or aristocrat was probably the most expensive things the theater owned and it would not 'do' to have them get wet! (Cummings 2003).

Richard Burbage and his brother, known as the "Burbage brothers," had inherited the original theater from their father, James Burbage ("James Burbage," Elizabethan Era, 2008). When the lease expired for the original location, the Burbages reassembled the theater on the South Bank of the Thames in 1599. This was considered to be one of the 'seedier' districts of London. As well as play-going (a disreputable practice in and of itself), bearbaiting, bull-baiting, and prostitution, were other popular spectator sports on the South Bank (Cummings 2003). When the first Globe burnt down in 1613 "an auditor whose breaches were on fire" was "doused with ale," given that "liquid refreshments" at the tavern were always nearby at the Globe (Burgess 80).

Shakespeare had a financial interest in the theater, as well as acted with and wrote for the Burbage's company called the Lord Chamberlain's Men. Shakespeare and four other investors and actors, including John Heminges, Augustine Phillips, Thomas Pope and Will Kemp, owned the remaining 50% in equal shares and Shakespeare profited as much from owning the theater as from the reputation secured by his plays during his lifetime (Cummings 2003). Thus, unlike today, the 'entertainment industry' of the Elizabethan theater was far more integrated in its roles. The affection and self-referential nature of the players towards the Globe is evident in the comments of many of Shakespeare's characters such as when one character is said to be "spherical" like a "globe" (i.e. fat) (Burgess 67). As well as owning the theater, Richard Burbage was the first actor in history to play Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, King Lear, Romeo, Henry V and Richard III, and it is reputed that Shakespeare performed the 'ghost' in the first production of "Hamlet" and Will Kemp was a noted clown and likely was the first fool in "Lear"(Burgess 25).