William Shakespeare
(1564-1616)
William Shakespeare is the most important playwright the world has ever known. Theaters throughout the world perform his plays more often than any other playwright’s, living or dead.
Shakespeare was born in the small village of Stratford-upon-Avon. Stratford is about 75 miles northwest of London. Shakespeare’s father was a glove maker. His father also served as alderman and mayor of Stratford. Young William likely attended the grammar school in Stratford. Only the sons of prominent families could attend the schools of the time. William would have been eligible to attend, due to his father’s elected office.
The details of Shakespeare’s childhood remain a mystery. At the age of 18, William married Anne Hathaway. They had a daughter named Susanna. Two years later, Anne gave birth to twins, a boy, Hamnet, and a girl, Judith. Shakespeare left Stratford soon after the birth of the twins. No one knows what Shakespeare did from the time he left Stratford until he became known in London seven years later. Historians refer to this time as the “lost years.”
The first record of Shakespeare in London appears in 1592. By 1594 he was a member of a theatrical troupe, The Lord Chamberlain’s men. Shakespeare wrote at least 37 plays and several poems from 1590 until 1608. According to legend, Shakespeare worked as an actor as well as a playwright for the company.
In 1599 Shakespeare and his associates built the Globe Theater. They built the Globe on the south bank of the Thames (pronounced “Tims”) River, just opposite the center of London. The Globe was an open-air theater. The company performed in the Globe in the summers. During the winters, they also performed in The Blackfriars, an indoor theater.
Shakespeare’s plays became popular, and his company often performed for Queen Elizabeth I and her court. They later performed for King James I. The King issued a patent to Shakespeare’s company, and the name was then changed to The King’s Company.
Shakespeare gradually retired from the theater. He built a home in Stratford, which he named New Place. He died in April 1616 and was buried in the crypt of the Holy Trinity Church in Stratford.
Shakespeare wrote comedies, tragedies, and histories. No other playwright has matched his fame or influence. He is noted for his wonderful use of language; his plays contain beautiful poetry as well as prose. His plays also contain many jokes, puns, and other language tricks. Many of Shakespeare’s lines are still quoted today. His plays are also famous for their important characters. Shakespeare was very observant of human nature. His characters are remarkable human beings. Numerous stage, film, and video productions of his works bring the genius of Shakespeare to new audiences in each generation.
Shakespeare’s Theater
William Shakespeare and his partners built the Globe Theater in 1599 in a London suburb named Southwark. Southwark was on the south bank of the Thames River, just across the river from the center of the city. This was a major entertainment area of the time.
The Globe was a three-storied building. It had a small hut on top of the roof. The owners of the theater raised a flag from a flag pole on top of the hut on the days of performances. London citizens could look across the river and see which of the theaters would have a production that day.
The Globe enclosed an open courtyard. The theater patrons named this courtyard the pit. People who paid the lowest ticket price stood in this area; they were referred to as the groundlings. Almost surrounding the pit were three seating galleries. Audience members who paid for more expensive tickets could sit in these galleries. In addition to being able to sit while watching the play, the audience members in the gallery were protected from the sun and rain by a thatched roof.
A large platform, called the main stage, protruded from one end of the pit. Most of the action of the play occurred here. The theater owners cut a trap-door into the main stage floor. The trap door could be opened to allow scenes in which ghosts and demons would appear or disappear; it could also become a grave, as in a famous scene from Hamlet.
A roof, supported by two large columns, covered the stage area. This roof protected the actors and their costumes from the rain. Paintings of the Sun, Moon, and stars covered the underside of the roof. The roof area above the stage became known as the heavens because of this decoration. In some plays, technicians lowered actors portraying angels or spirits from the heavens onto the main stage as if the actors were descending from heaven.
In back of the main stage was a small room. A curtain hung between this room and the main stage. The name of this room was the inner-below. They opened this to reveal scenes to the audience. The inner-below was the location of interior scenes in the plays.
Above and to the rear of the main stage was a balcony that was used when actors needed to overlook some action on the main stage below. In back of this balcony was another small curtained room, called the inner-above, that was used in much the same manner as the inner-below. The theater also had two small balconies, one on each side of the main stage.
In Shakespeare’s time the audience did not expect the plays to be realistic. Scenery was not used; one or two items or pieces of furniture would suggest the location of the scene. If the audience saw a throne on the stage, they knew the location was in a palace or castle. If they saw a couple of tree branches on the stage, they knew the scene was in a forest. Since the crew did not need to move the scenery, the plays contained many short scenes and a variety of locations. Though the theaters of the time did not use scenery or special lighting, they did use colorful costumes, musical accompaniment, and special sound effects.
Shakespeare/Globe Theater Name:
Worksheet Period:
Using information in the handout, please complete the following:
1. What town was the birthplace of William Shakespeare?
2. What was his father’s occupation?
3. What was the name of William Shakespeare’s wife?
4. What was the name of Shakespeare’s son?
5. What is the name given the time between when Shakespeare left his home town and when he appeared in London?
6. What year did Shakespeare first appear in records in London?
7. What was the name of Shakespeare’s troupe?
8. What name did they use under the reign of King James I?
9. What was the name of Shakespeare’s open-air theater?
10. How many plays did Shakespeare write?
11. What river runs through London? (Write its correct pronunciation, also)
12. What was the name of Shakespeare’s indoor theater?
13. Where was Shakespeare buried?
14. In what year did Shakespeare and his partners build the Globe?
15. What was the name of the London suburb in which they built the Globe?
16. What river was near the Globe?
17. How did London citizens know which theaters would be giving performances?
18. What did they call the audience members who stood in the pit?
19. What type of roof did the Globe have?
20. What did the owners of the Globe cut into the main stage floor?
21. What was the name given to the roof over the stage area?
22. What was the name of the small room in back of the main balcony?
23. What was the name of the small room in back of the main stage?
24. What was located above and on both sides of the main stage?
25. What was used to indicate that a scene was taking place in a forest?