“The Shakespearean Theatrical World”
from
The Complete Pelican Shakespeare (xliii-xlv)
Economic realities in
Shakespeare’s World
For centuries, theatre activity in England had
been nonprofessional
O Craft guilds provided religious drama
O These mystery plays were celebrations of
religious and civic festivals
O Performed in Latin, these forms were
established and socially acceptable
Professional Theatre
Existed on the margins of society
O Companies toured
O Actors were not held in high esteem
Professional Theatre began to gain respectability in
the mid 16th century when wealthy aristocrats
began to support acting companies
O Lord Admiral’s Men
O Lord Chamberlain’s Men
Permanent Theatre were built
beginning with the Red Lion in 1567
Others followed
The Theatre – 1576
The Rose – 1587
The Swan – 1596 
The Globe – 1599
The Fortune - 1600
The Second Globe - 1613
Remains of the Rose
• Small thrust stage that tapered into pit
• Stage was 25 feet wide in front
• 36 feet at the back
• 16 ½ feet deep
Owned by Philip Henslowe, it was “improved”
in 1592. Stage was enlarged and seating
increased
A typical English playhouse as
seen in Shakespeare’s day
Theatres were half full on most
performance days
Population in London (1590-1620) estimated
between 150,000 and 250,000
Almost a tenth of the population attended the
theatres
Repertories changed often. In the month between
Sept 15 and Oct 15, 1595, the Lord Admiral’s Men
played 28 performances of 18 different plays
Public playhouses operated in
daylight (Noon to 3)
Bill included a play followed by a dance,
fencing display or other nondramatic exhibition
Performances were played every day except
during Lent or periods of plague, when the
theatres were closed
Modern Globe was constructed based
upon research of the period
Audiences
Magic and violence were popular.
Special effects were developed using pig
bladders, winches, cannons, fireworks and
musicians.
From 1576-1590 and 1599-1614, Public
playhouses competed with private playhouses
like those at court.
Companies
Professional companies at court made use of boy
companies. In the outdoor theatres, the actors
were adult men and boys…no women actors during
Shakespeare’s lifetime.
Outdoor theatres seated 2000-2500, the indoor
spaces on 200-600. Private theatres charged
higher prices.
Musical entertainments were performed between
“acts” in the private theatres.
Shakespeare wrote for the Lord
Chamberlain’s Men (Later the King’s Men)
Distinctions between public and privates
changed by the end of the 1610s
Actors continued to be considered as
vagabonds unless connected to the patronage
of an aristocrat or member of the royal family
A joint-stock company
Shakespeare and his fellow company
members made a good living at the height of
their popularity and their royal patronage
helped lend them credibility.
Still public officials considered the theatres a
nuisance because the drew rowdy crowds, they
were noisy, attracted pickpockets and whores,
etc.
Public entertainments
Until the Civil War (1616-1642) anti-theatrical
forces failed to shut down the theatres.
The theatre remained popular during
Shakespeare’s most prolific days.
The prevalence of public entertainments in the
period “has been underestimated. Fairs, holidays,
games, sporting events all were popular, but the
theatre was most popular.