Drama in the Age of Queen Elizabeth Elizabethan Theater Drama in the Age of Queen Elizabeth

Popularity Going to the theater was the Elizabethan equivalent of going to the movies Popular among all people Most notable theater was The Globe Held 2,500-3,000 people Groundlings - paid a penny to stand Queen Eliz. was a great patron of drama April 22, 2017 British Literature

The Globe Globe had no lighting or elaborate sets - plays had to be performed during the day Playwright’s words had to create the mood Talented actors had to bring the words to life - remember that women could not act April 22, 2017 British Literature

The New Globe Theater April 22, 2017 British Literature

Inside the Globe April 22, 2017 British Literature

The Drama of Shakespeare The Greatest of Elizabethan Playwrights

Background on Shakespeare 1564-1616 Born in Stratford-on-Avon Father was a merchant Received no education beyond grammar school Married Anne Hathaway in 1582 (he was 18 and she was 26), had three children Susanna, 1583 Judith and Hamnet (twins), 1585 Moved to London in late 1580s to pursue theater Part owner of Lord Chamberlain’s men - very successful theater company April 22, 2017 British Literature

Shakespeare’s Drama Wrote 37 plays - tragedies, comedies, histories, and romances Written to be performed Plays first published in 1623 - The First Folio Did Shakespeare really write his plays…? April 22, 2017 British Literature

Other Writers on Shakespeare “He was not of an age, but for all time!” Ben Jonson “Shakespeare is the poet of nature: the poet that holds up to his readers a faithful mirror of manners and life.” Samuel Johnson “He was the man who of all modern, and perhaps ancient poets had the largest and most comprehensive soul.” John Dryden So why is Shakespeare still so popular after 400 years? April 22, 2017 British Literature

The Tragedies Most famous tragedies - Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth Tragedy - inspired by the theater of Ancient Greece and Rome (think Oedipus) Play in which disaster befalls the hero -he dies at the end Tragic flaw - character trait that brings about the downfall of the hero April 22, 2017 British Literature