Globe Theatre

The Globe Theatre located within the part of London called Southwark was constructed from timbers of an Elizabethan playhouse originally known as The Theatre built by in 1576 by an actor named James Burbage (1531 – 1597) situating it in Shoreditch, Curtain Road, London (Orser 284).

The Globe Theatre was built on May 16, 1599 marking the post-mortem inventory of the property of Sir Thomas Brend, whose son, Nicholas Brend, had leased the playhouse site to the actors of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, namely Richard Burbage and Cuthbert Burbage (who had doubled shares of ownership), and single share owners William Shakespeare, John Heminges, Augustine Philips, and Thomas Pope (Brooke 31; Orser 284).

Unfortunately, the flourishing days of Globe Theatre ended on June 29, 1613 after a cannon fire directed to theatre during the on-going performance of Henry VIII (LoMonico 184). The theatre was eventually rebuilt within a year with a lease grant of thirty-one years until the Christmas of 1644; however, the puritan parliament prohibited theatrical recreations and arts during the height of English Civil Wards of the 17th century leading to the demolition of the Global Theater in exchange to the establishment of tenement properties (Orser 284).

In 1970, an American actor Sam Wanamaker started a Globe Theatre Trust program to raise monetary sources for the reestablishment of the Globe Theatre replica in its original Southwark location (Stone and Planel 109). In 1985, the Friends of Shakespeare’s Globe was founded, and after three years (1993), the reconstruction of the Globe Theatre started despite the death of the Globe Trust developer, S. Wanamaker, in Dec 18, 1993 (LoMonico 184).

Originally, the target date of formal Globe Theater reestablishment was on September 19, 1999, but the building process and theatrical opening occurred earlier than expected (Evans 1948). The 20-sided cylindrical Globe Theatre building finally emerged in April 20, 1997, and in May 29, 1997, the first performance of the theater started at exactly 7:30 in the evening with audience attendance of more than 1,400 (Stone and Planel 122; LoMonico 184).

Globe Theatre had become part of the English ancient heritage influencing Elizabethan theatres and playhouse designs during the modernization of English theatrical presentations. II. Discussion a. Structure and Type of Audience From the time of the original Globe Theatre in 1599 up to its formal reestablishment in 1997, founders of the playhouse were able to retain the significant characteristics of Elizabethan architecture later mixed with the modern playhouse interiors that further enhanced the 1614-replica of Globe Theatre (Evans 1947).

The structure of the first and the second Globe Theatre was cylindrical in architectural shape possessing carved and wooden-framed walls with a large number of supporting pillars under the galleries, and utilizing Elizabethan theatre shape (Nicoll 22). According to historical reports and accounts gathered by various anthropologists (Blatherwick and Gurr 1992; Chamberlain 2000), Globe Theatre was large enough to measure a volume of approximately 10,000 cubic meters (350,000 cubic feet) catering to a total audience capacity up to 3,000 playgoers.

The shape of theatre itself was twenty-sided cylindrical polygon measuring a diameter of at least 30 meters, and with an open-air top for ventilation (Blesser and Salter 98). Unfortunately, historical accounts revealed that the 1614 Globe Theatre was always subjected to flooding as there were no existing embankments to prevent the water from entering the theater (Orser 284). The reestablishment of the modern Globe Theater has followed the 1614 model with added Elizabethan details and interiors in various areas of the theater.

Some of these modern theatrical enhancements are the projecting stage and three tiers of raked seating, round theatrical interior, surfacing sounds through wall and stage canopy reflectors, air top reverberators, ray tracing sound paths, and aural architectural designs (Blesser and Salter 99). Globe Theatre now possesses a center stage measuring 44 feet wide and 25 feet deep costing to approximately ? 30 million (Evans 1948). Audience capacity of the Globe audience stage alone has accounted to 1,000 seats and 500 bystanders (Evans 1948).

Currently, attendance on Globe Theatre lists more than 1,500 audiences daily making the theatrical business as an evident income generator for the shareholders (Stone and Planel 122). b. Impact on Elizabethan Era The establishment of Globe Theater from 1599 up to 1997 has provided significant contributions in the expansion of Elizabethan perspective and theatrical representations. The plays provided by the group of Lord Chamberlain’s Men during 1599 up to early 1600s are most of the time related to tragedy inspired by renaissance and medieval characteristics (Chamberlain 2000).

Plays presented in the Globe Theatre reached several English audiences expanding the idea of mysticisms and religious contexts of medieval and renaissance England (Blesser and Salter 98). During the Elizabethan era, Shakespearean plays depicting mysteries, religion, legends inclined to biblical contexts, and medieval English festivities have influenced the many parts of Europe, especially with the adaptations of tragedy caused by English Civil wars (Nicoll 21).

The concept of Elizabethan theaters is inclined to the public theatrical plays open to the general public viewing. In the past, London authorities confront Elizabethan theaters with hostile reactions due to the mass gathering, public use and portrayal of negative characters of those in authorities, and others (Blatherwick and Gurr 1992). Globe Theatre has enabled the expansion of public theatrical presentations even earning the Queen Elizabeth and Elizabethan court’s interests in viewing its performances (Stone and Planel 122).

In terms of Globe Theatre’s architectural designs patterned to Elizabethan themes, the playhouse has utilized the effects of gallery, stage levels and curtain’s concealing space to maintain the allegorical dimensions of the medieval stage (Evans 1948). From the Elizabethan perspective, the central stage of Globe Theatre represents the Middle Earth where normal human relationships occur, while the concealed spaces symbolize negative areas in the Shakespearean plots (e. g. Macbeth’s Three Witches, devils, etc. ) (Richmond 197). c. Shakespeare’s Roles: Importance in the Globe

Aside from being the part-owner of the first and second Globe Theatre, William Shakespeare had played significant roles in the expansion, growth and popularization of the plays performed at Globe Theatre (Brooke 32-31). Shakespeare believed in his theatrical principle, “totus mundus agit histrionem”, connoting the idea that plays were to be conceived by playwrights and born through the stage (Wells and Stanton 2). Indeed, Shakespeare and his plays emphasized the medieval and renaissance ideologies with Elizabethan culture consisting of tragedies (e. g. Romeo and Juliet, Othello, etc. ), mysteries (e.

g. Macbeth, etc. ), medieval environment, and social reformation (Stone and Planel 104). In a closer perspective, Global Theatre became known for its Shakespearean plays depicting municipal panorama and domestic spaces that did not only correspond to chamber performances, but in public-oriented theaters possessing Elizabethan cityscape characteristics (Wells and Stanton 2). During the early 1600s, Shakespeare created and presented plays in Global theatre emphasizing the allegories and morality of the sophisticated, metropolitan life of Europe (e. g. Othello, Midsummer Night’s Dream, etc.

) versus the medieval and renaissance contexts of his time (e. g. Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, etc. ) (Morgan 325). III. Conclusion In conclusion, Globe Theatre has become an important heritage of modern Europe due to its capacity to provide Elizabethan oriented performances through Shakespearean plays and theatrical performances. From its founding date in 1599 up to its third reestablishment in 1997, Globe Theatre has consistently reflected Elizabethan and Shakespearean themed performances depicting the renaissance and medieval plays originating from the historical performances of Lord Chamberlain’s Men.

Most importantly, the modern Globe Theatre has derived its designs, functions and interior from the original 1614 model to retain the Elizabethan and Shakespearean feel of the theatre. IV. Works Cited Blatherwick, Simon, and Andrew Gurr. “Shakespeare’s factory: archaeological evaluations on the site of the Globe Theatre at 1/15 Anchor Terrace, Southwark Bridge Road, Southwark . ” Journal of Antiquity 66. 251 (June 1992): 315–333 . Blesser, Barry, and Linda Salter. Spaces Speak, are You Listening? : Experiencing Aural Architecture. London, New York: MIT Press, 2007. Brooke, Tucker.

Shakespeare of Stratford: A Handbook for Students. London, U. K: Ayer Publishing, 1970. Chamberlain, Paul G. “The Shakespearian globe: geometry, optics, spectacle. ” Society and Space 19 (June 2001): 317-333. Evans, Blakemore G. The Riverside Shakespeare. London, New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1998. LoMonico, Mike. The Shakespeare Book of Lists: The Ultimate Guide to the Bard, His Plays, and How They’Ve Been Interpreted (And Misinterpreted) Through the Ages. London, New York: Career Press, 2001. Morgan, Kenneth O. The Oxford History of Britain. London, New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.

Nicoll, Allardyce. Shakespeare Survey. London, New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003. Orser, C E. Encyclopedia of Historical Archaeology. London, New York: Routledge, 2002. Richmond, Hugh. Shakespeare’s Theatre: A Dictionary of His Stage Context. London, New York: Continuum International Publishing Group, 2004. Stone, Peter G. , and Philippe G. Planel. The Constructed Past: Experimental Archaeology, Education and the Public. London, New York: Routledge, 1999. Wells, Stanley W. , and Sarah Stanton. The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare on Stage. London, New York: Cambridge University Press, 2002.

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