1. Elizabethan Theatre The English Renaissance 1570-1620

2. The theatre of England during the 1500s was dominated by the writing and plays of William Shakespeare. He is one of the most widely read and performed playwrights of all time. His plays are still studied and performed today, and many have been made into films.

3. Shakespeare

4. The Renaissance
A period in history when many exciting and inspirational beliefs and works were created.
A time of new learning and ideas
Development of philosophy: questioning human individuality, intelligence and the meaning of life

5. A time of revival of classical art and philosophy
At this time England was a very proud and powerful nation
Queen Elizabeth I loved the theatre and supported it
Therefore the theatre of this time is called ‘Elizabethan Theatre”

6. Queen Elizabeth I of England

7. ‘The Swan’ Playhouse 1596

8. Elizabethan Theatres Theatres were commonly called ‘playhouses’
The first playhouse was built by James Burbage in London in 1576
This playhouse was called “The Theatre”
James Burbage’s son became a great Elizabethan actor

9. The playhouses were all wooden structures
They had circular walls
They had an open air centre called ‘the pit’ – this centre did not have a roof
The stage was raised

10. The stage was surrounded by audience on three sides
Behind the backstage wall was the backstage area
The backstage area was used for dressing rooms, scenery and special FX machinery

12. A. The "Hut," with machinery for lowering the "Heavenly Throne" to the stage. B. The "Heavens" C. Top stage, sometimes used as music gallery D. Upper stage E. Window stages F. Inner stage, sometimes called the study G. "Traps" leading down to the "Hell" under the stage H. "Gentleman's Rooms" or "Lords' Rooms" J. Storage lofts, dressing rooms, etc. K. Dressing rooms L. Backstage area M. Main entrances to auditorium N. Doorways connecting with gallery staircase. O. Entrances to galleries and staircases

14. Playhouse stage with ‘the pit’ in front and levels of audience seating on three sides

16. Playhouse seating – 2nd level

17. Playhouse roofs were made of thatched straw and wood
Musicians played from the upper gallery or ‘musicians gallery’
Scenery and props were usually self supporting and painted, as in medieval productions
But real props were such as furniture pieces were also used

18. Not Just For Plays!!
The actual stage was portable and was sometimes moved from the playhouse to use for ‘sporting events’
These ‘sporting events’ involved the baiting and killing of animals!

19. Bear Baiting

20. Costumes
Actors wore the clothes that were in fashion at the time except for special types of non human characters, such as fairies
Even when actors were playing characters from another time in past history they wore the clothes of the current period
Costumes were beautiful, detailed and expensive

21. Making costumes for “Henry IV” by Shakespeare

22. Elizabethan Acting Companies
Actors belonged to companies of ten to twenty men
Women were not allowed to act so males played all female roles!
Each company had its own manager
Each company also had patrons who supported them financially

23. The companies were professionally run to make money
Actors were very dedicated as this was their career, their profession for life
As well as acting skills they could also sing, dance and play musical instruments
Backstage crew and musicians were also paid for their work

24. The Hazards of Being an Elizabethan Actor
Life was not easy for the actors because many things could go wrong
Playhouses could burn down – they were made of wood and thatch!
In times of contagious diseases such as plague, the playhouses were closed to stop the spread of infection, so the actors had no way to earn a living

25. Winters were bitterly cold and playhouses did not have heating
Some companies toured their plays and performed outdoors
Audiences were often rough and rowdy, unlike the polite way in which theatre goers behave in theatres today
Audiences loved going to the playhouses because it was the most popular form of entertainment in Elizabethan England

26. William Shakespeare

27. The Bard – Shakespeare 1564 - 1616
Born at Stratford-on-Avon in England
Shakespeare was considered a genius
He wrote more than 36 plays
His plays were renowned for their powerful language, their clever crafting and the depth of characterisation

28. Little is known about Shakespeare’s life
He was married at 18 to Anne Hathaway
They had three children: a daughter and twin sons. One of the twins, Hamnet, died in childhood
After his marriage he went to work as a playwright and actor in London

29. How Shakespeare would have lived

30. Anne Hathaway’s cottage in Stratford-on-Avon

31. The Plays Shakespeare wrote tragedies, comedies and histories
His plays dealt with deep human experiences that his audiences could relate to
The histories dealt with stories of past Kings, but were often written to please Queen Elizabeth I rather than being factual

32. Romeo and Juliet
One of his famous plays “Romeo and Juliet” is about two young innocent lovers torn apart by family conflict
Although it was written 400 years ago it still speaks to our modern audiences. It has been made into a number of films during the past 40 years and the one with Leonardo di Caprio was hugely successful

33. Baz Luhrman’s film version 1996

34. Love at first sight (at the fancy dress party)

35. Juliet in Love

36. The Tragic End – Both Lovers Die

37. The language of the plays is poetic, often written in a poetry form called ‘iambic pentameter’
The language is powerful with beautiful verse and poetry
Regardless of the poetry Shakespeare was able to keep the plays fast moving and exciting

38. The Comedies The comedies were much more light hearted
More like some of the Commedia dell’arte plays, except that they were scripted, rather than improvised
The same themes were common: love, betrayal, mistaken identity

39. Modern Shakespeare Theatre Companies
There are many theatre companies in the 21st century who specialise in performing Shakespeare’s plays
Bell Shakespeare in Australia
Royal Shakespeare Company in England
Bell Shakespeare modernises the settings and the costumes but not the words

40. Measure For Measure – a comedy by Shakespeare – by Bell Shakespeare Co.

41. Shakespeare’s role
He was a stakeholder in “The Globe” playhouse which was built in 1599
His plays were performed at “The Globe” to huge audiences though not as large as the ancient Greek audiences
He had his own theatre company called “The King’s Men” which was supported by the Lord Chamberlain’s men

42. “The Globe”

43. Other Famous Elizabethan Playwrights
Christopher Marlowe
He died at the age of 29 in rather mysterious circumstances, probably murdered
He wrote many plays though not as many as Shakespeare
His most famous play is “Doctor Faustus”; a play about a man who sells his soul to the devil. It is similar to the morality plays of the Middle Ages but much more finely crafted.
He also wrote plays much more like Shakespeare’s including history plays about past kings

44. Christopher Marlowe

45. Ben Jonson
He lived a troubled life like Marlowe
His comic plays included “Volpone” and “Every Man in His Humour”
These comic plays made fun of all types of people
Jonson also wrote special performances for the new Royal leaders called “Masques”. They were very elaborate and aimed at impressing Royalty

46. Ben Jonson

47. The End of Elizabethan Theatre
The quality of theatre declined
The emphasis became more on being spectacular
The new Puritan religion objected and saw theatre as sinful and a waste of money

48. Many inferior plays were being written and performed
These plays focused on violence and bloody death, and the Puritan government banned all plays
By the time of the English Civil War in 1642 all playhouses were closed down
This ban on theatre lasted for twenty years

49. And so, with religion, another era of theatre also ends…