The man, the myth, the legend

 Elizabethan period 1558 – 1603 England ruled by Queen Elizabeth I, daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Henry had 6 wives Katherine of Aragon – Divorced Anne Boleyn – Beheaded (accused of adultery) Jane Seymour – Died Anne of Cleves – Divorced Katharine Howard – Beheaded (accused of adultery) Katharine Parr – Survived Called “The English Renaissance” Explosion of learning, art, and culture Renaissance = “Rebirth” Background

  Ruled England for 45 years.  Nicknamed “the Virgin Queen” and produced no heir to the throne  Restored Protestantism and formalized the Church of England  During her reign, the economy was weakened by inflation, food shortages, and high rent.  Outbreak of the black plague, food riots, Catholic conspiracies, threats of invasion, etc. Queen Elizabeth I – ( )

  William Shakespeare was born around April 23, 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon, England.  Christened on April 26, 1564  Parents  John Shakespeare– a glovemaker & sometime local politician  Mary Arden – daughter of a wealthy landowner.  Childhood  Attended the Stratford Free Grammar School until the age of 15.  Apprenticed as a glove maker with his father.  He was the third child of eight, and the eldest surviving son. Who was Shakespeare?

  Married Anne Hathaway on November 27,  She was 26, a landowner and businesswoman in her own right, and pregnant.  He was 18.  They had three children  Susannah – May 26, 1583  Hamnet & Judith (twins) – February 2, 1585  Between , Shakespeare disappears from public record. The marriage…

  In 1592, Shakespeare shows up in public record as an actor, writer, and producer with the Lord Chamberlain’s Men  Acting companies depended on wealthy patrons to support their theatres and shows.  The Lord Chamberlain was the official head of all things theatre-related in Elizabethan England.  The Lord Chamberlain could open and close theatres at will, and usually did.  Theatres closed between due to the bubonic Plague London…

  Wrote 37 attributed plays & roughly 154 sonnets.  Is considered the greatest playwright of the English language, but he Was not seriously studied until the mid-1800s.  Is credited with contributing over 2,000 words and phrases to the English language  Competed with Christopher Marlowe ( Doctor Faustus ) and Richard Burbage for business and fame.  Had the equivalent of an 8 th grade education.  The Bard's will gave most of his property to Susanna, his first child and not to his wife Anne Hathaway. Instead his loyal wife infamously received his "second-best bed".  The Bard's second best bed wasn’t so bad, it was his marriage bed; his best bed was for guests.  Died on his 52 nd birthday in Stratford on April 23, Shakespeare in a nutshell

  Early plays, 1590’s, were mainly comedy  Comedy (and this could be extended to most of Shakespeare's history plays as well) is social--leading to a happy resolution (usually a marriage or marriages) and social unification.  Shakespeare began to focus on tragedy/dramatic themes in the late 1500s - early 1600s  The change from comedy to tragedy is usually attributed to the loss of Hamnet, Shakespeare’s son, in 1596 of unknown causes.  Tragedy is individual, concentrating on the suffering of a single, remarkable hero--leading to individual torment, waste and death  1608 marks a change in tone from tragedy to romance, light, magic, and reconciliation The Plays

  Comedy of Errors 1592  The Taming of the Shrew  A Midsummer Night's Dream  The Merchant of Venice  Much Ado About Nothing  Twelfth Night The Comedies… Comedy = everyone gets married

  Romeo & Juliet – 1595  Hamlet  Othello  King Lear  Macbeth – 1605 Tragedy = everybody dies The tragedies

  Only men were permitted to perform  Young boys whose voices had not changed play women’s roles  It would have been considered indecent for a woman to appear on stage  Costumes were often the company’s most valuable asset  Costumes were made by the company, bought in London, or donated by courtiers When in the play…

  Stage --  platform that extended into the pit  Dressing & storage rooms in galleries behind & above stage  Second-level gallery & upper stage --  famous balcony scene in R & J  Trap door -  ghosts, “Hell”  “Heavens”-  angelic beings  Plays were most often performed in outdoor theaters  Performances took place during the day so that the stage would be illuminated by natural light All the world’s a stage…

 ☺ Built in 1599 ☺ The most magnificent theater in London ☺ Shakespeare was 1/5 owner ☺ He earned 10% of the total profit, approximately £ a year (roughly $200,000 - $250,000 today) ☺ The Bard retired to Stratford and lived on the profits he earned from the Globe ☺June 19, 1613 the Globe burned to the ground during a performance of Henry VIII The Globe Theatre

  Many of Shakespeare’s plays were performed here  The stage was a large, rectangle that jutted out into the yard  Held 2,000-3,000 people tightly packed  An open playhouse with a wooden structure three stories high  It was shaped like a 16 sided polygon  General admission = 1 Penny entitled a spectator to be a “groundling”- someone who could stand in the yard.  More expensive seats were in the roofed galleries and most expensive seats were chairs set right on the stage along its two sides  Rebuilt in 1900’s The Globe…

  1 shilling to stand  2 shillings to sit in the balcony  1 shilling was 10% of their weekly income  Broadway Today:  $85 Orchestra  $60 Balcony  10% of a teacher’s weekly salary Let’s go to the theatre!

 Aristotle’s Definition of Tragedy  “ A man of high standard who falls from that high because of a tragic flaw that has affected many ” Characteristics of a Tragic Hero:  Character must be of noble/high stature  Hubris (tragic flaw) - pride blinds them  Downfall  Enlightenment (near the end of the play)  Their death The Tragic Hero…