Elizabethan Theatre Notes PDF

Name: Class Period: INTRODUCTION TO ELIZABETHAN THEATRE NOTES Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603) Appearance: *Pale-faced—avoided too much ______________________....

Name: Class Period: INTRODUCTION TO ELIZABETHAN THEATRE NOTES Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603) Appearance: *Pale-faced—avoided too much ______________________. *About 5’3’’ tall (short by today’s standards, but average for the time period) *She wore elaborate wigs (16th C fashion) but was never actually _______________, as many portraits suggest. Elizabethan Drama This time of Elizabeth’s reign over England is also known as the ______________________ and “The ______________ ________________.” __________________________________ was the main form of literature? **Most people were illiterate (they could not ___________ or _______________), but they could learn life lessons and become exposed to the language of the time. ** Performing for the Queen Elizabeth devoted herself to the study of the ancient classical period and delighted in _____________________. Elizabeth did not attend __________________ ____________________ (due to threats of assassination) but allowed performances at three of her royal palaces.  Shakespeare later featured the queen in ____________________________ (about her father), which was only performed once at the Globe theatre, and never printed! William Shakespeare 1. When was he born? _____________________________________ 2. Where was he born? ___________________________________ 3. He married _____________ Hathaway; Three children: Susannah and (twins) __________________ and __________________. 4. What is the strange coincidence between his birth and death? ________________________________________________________________________________. 5. How many TOTAL plays did he write? _________ 6. What was his first published play? ______________________________ (1594) 7. What other TYPES of writing did Shakespeare create? _______________________, particularly __________________. Shakespeare’s Death 1. Shakespeare died on his 52nd birthday. It is rumored that he died from _______________________ ____________________. He ate some bad kippered herring (pickled fish) at the local Pub. He would often eat at the Pub, which is where he would also write, because he did not have to burn his own candles- saving him money. Shakespeare’s gravestone bears an epitaph which he himself supposedly wrote: “Good friend for ______________ sake forbear, To dig the ____________ enclosed here. Blessed be the man that spares these stones and cursed be he that moves my ______________.” Elizabethan Playhouse History 1. In 1576, James Burbage, an actor, built a permanent playhouse in Shoreditch, just outside the city of London, which did not require the permission of the _________________city magistrates. 2. A second playhouse, ____________________________________, rises close to the Theatre in 1577. 3. A third, _______________________________________, opens in 1587 on the south bank of the Thames in the area known as Bankside. Burbage, builder of the original Theatre, died in 1597. Why “The Globe”? Two years later his two sons dismantle the building and carry the timber over the river to Bankside, where they use it as the basis for a theatre with a new name - ________________. It is where many of ____________________________'s plays are first presented. The GLOBE Stage Elements The Globe Theatre: Costs to Attend a Play ◻ 1 PENNY PRICE: Ordinary Londoners stand in the __________ or ______________. ◻ 2 PENNY PRICE: Others find a hard seat in the upper gallery. ◻ 3 PENNY PRICE: Gives access to the two lower galleries and a _________________ __________________.  12 PENNY/SHILLING PRICE: A few places in the first gallery, to left and right of the stage, are reserved for wealthy gentlemen. It has been said that during Shakespeare's time one Londoner in ___________ went to the theatre each week. A city of 160,000 people is providing a weekly audience of about 21,000. Elizabethan Plays ◻ What does the term “Players” refer to? ______________________________ ◻ Actors were _______________________. ◻ ____________ _______________ would play female characters. ◻ Actors formed groups called “__________________________” (i.e. the Queen’s Men). ◻ Costumes were expensive and elaborate (embroidery, ruffs, pearls, lace, etc.) ◻ Brightly colored, helped distinguish various characters. Shakespeare’s Plays: Comedy vs. Tragedy ____________________________ usually ended in marriage (Ex: A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream or Much Ado About Nothing) ◻ _______________________________________ were based off the actual lives of real people and events. (Ex: Henry V, Henry VIII, Richard II) ◻ ______________________________________ were plays with tragic heroes that encountered a series of unfortunate events; usually leading to the death of the lead character (Ex: Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo & Juliet). Sets & Props No___________________ or _____________________, because they wanted the audience to use their imagination to create the scenery (it was also expensive). There was no _______________________ (candles and natural light only) __________________________ were more valued than scenery. Audiences ◻ Nobles would have paid for the better seats, often with cushions or in chairs on the side. ◻ Commoners were often called the “__________________________________” or “___________________,” standing in the theatre pit right in front of the stage. ◻ The “_________________________________”—the box at the entrance where attendees paid 1 penny to view the show. ◻ Attendance dropped during outbreaks of the___________________________________ (1593, 1603 and 1608). Notes: