Shakespeare

Life of Shakespeare

Shakespeare• Born April 23, 1564 in Stratford-upon

Avon• His father, John Shakespeare was a

successful glove maker– Finally given coat of arms (family crest) in

1596 after William’s success

• His mother, Mary Arden came from a rich, landowning family

• Was the third of eight siblings, although his two older siblings died young

Shakespeare in love• November 1582, 18 year old

Shakespeare married 26 year old Anne Hathaway, also of Stratford upon Avon

• May 1583, Susanna (1st child) was born

• Had three kids: Susanna, Hamnet, and Judith– Hamnet died at eleven, leaving

Shakespeare without a son

“All the World’s a Stage”• 1588, Shakespeare began

writing and acting– Five poems– 154 sonnets– 37 plays• Histories, comedies, and tragedies

• In 1599, Shakespeare became a principle holder of the globe theater

The Globe• James Burbage built the first theater named,

“The Theater”• Where Burbage built the theater, charged too

high of a rent and Burbage decided to relocate across the River Thames

• Moved materials from “The Theater” across the river to South Bank and used them to build the “Globe Theater”

• Southbank was a “liberty” or suburb just outside of London (where theaters weren't allowed)– Prostitution and other unseemly activities took place

around these locations

The End of the Globe

• Extremely lucrative (money making) until 1613

• During the performance of Henry VII, the Globe caught fire and was burnt down

• Rebuilt in 1614 – “The Globe II”

• 1624, Globe shut down by Puritan England

New Place

• 1597, Shakespeare bought New Place where he would retire in 1611

• New Place destroyed after Shakespeare’s death– Too many tourists ruined it,

although some of the gardens still remain intact

The Death of the Bard

• Shakespeare died April 23, 1616

• Buried in Holt Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon

• Anne Hathaway (wife) died in August 1623

• Anne Hathaway, daughter Susanna, Dr. John Hall (son-in-law) and Thomas Nash (Susanna’s son-in-law) were buried next to Shakespeare

““Curse Been”• Curse on Shakespeare's grave– Good friend for Jesus sake forbear

To dig the dust enclosed here! Blest be the man that spares these stones, And curst be he that moves my bones

• Stated that no body could dig up his bones– Common for religious/research purposes to

dig up bodies and experiment on them

• Shakespeare fear of exhumation caused him to put in his will that he wanted a curse written on his tombstone

Elizabethan Theater

Queen Elizabeth• Queen Elizabeth's reign: 1558—1603 • Known as “Golden Age” because it was the

height of the British renaissance – Poetry and drama flourished under her

• Time of religious peace because everyone was following the Church of England (Christianity)– Some citizens practiced Catholicism, which

Elizabeth, unlike many other rulers of the time, allowed

– Elizabeth did not, “look into the hearts” of her citizens and they were able to quietly practice whatever religion they chose

Early Theater• Elizabeth was frugal, which helped her restore

England's budget– Because of the financial stability, the people of

England, including Elizabeth, began enjoying the theater

• Before Elizabeth’s reign, plays were performed by noblemen actors

• In 1572, actors began to be required to have a patron in order to keep traveling on the road to perform in different towns– As a result of this decree, acting became better,

because actors and playwrights were forced to hone their craft to ensure patronage• This meant that the quality of playwrights improved

drastically

Strict London• The city of London considered actors master less

men so they were looked down upon and weren't allowed within the city limits

• Queen Elizabeth, on the other hand, enjoyed theatre, and a compromise was reached when theatres began to spring up in London's suburbs, specifically those located on the south side of the River Thames

• Also located in South worth were other unseemly activities, including bear baiting, cock fighting and prostitution

• Because of Elizabeth's support, theater owners were allowed to say that public performances were really rehearsals for the queen which allowed them to both make a success and legally stay open

Popular Elizabethan Theaters

• On of the most popular theaters was, “The Theater”– Built by James Burbage and John

Brayne in Shoreditch in the year 1576

• More companies soon followed suit:– The Rose 1587– The Swan 1595– The Fortune 1600

Construction of Elizabethan Theaters

• Theaters during the Elizabethan era looked much different than modern theater– almost round in shape– Had a wood exterior– Had a thatched roof (making it

extremely flammable)– Had three stories that surrounded

an open space at the center

All the Classes Gather• The theater brought all different classes

together to enjoy one performance• 15% of London’s population would attend

the theaters at any given day, but the Queen was the most important audience– Elizabeth would have to okay every play

before it was performed, and had to approve/disapprove any play• Because of this, playwrights would find a way to

flatter the Queen within the play to win her favor

– The Queen herself never went to the theaters—instead, they were given to her privately

Classes are Separate• Despite the fact that all the classes were

together to watch one performance, there was still a very rigid structure of acceptance

• Each watched the play from different sections of the theatre– Upper Class: sat in the “Royal Box”, which

was located on the third story, (or Upper Gallery)

–Wealthy: sat in the middle gallery, while the moderately wealthy sat in the lower gallery

“Groundlings”

• Any commoner who attended the show was known as a groundling

• Because their entry was one pence, they had to stand in the open area at the center of the theatre on the ground

• Groundlings would often yell insults or suggestions at the actors and on many occasions throw food on the stage if they didn’t like what was happening (either the quality of the actor or what the character was doing)

All Audiences

• Because playwrights had to appeal to both the lower and the upper class, they would include subtle compliments to the Queen and bawdy (dirty) jokes for the lower class

• Playwrights would do this by including – Comic relief– Action – Direct dialogue with the Audience

Staging a Show

• To stage a show, you needed– A patron – A company– Shareholders– Playwright(s)– Actors– Costumes– Props– An Audience

The Lord Chamberlain's Men

• Shakespeare’s acting company• Produced by Lord Chamberlain

in 1594• As a patron, Lord Chamberlain

was basically the behind-the-scenes man that gave the company permission and money to perform their shows

Shareholders

• A company was compromised of shareholder who, much like modern-day shareholders, owned a piece of a company

• These shareholders were responsible for managing the company

• Most, if not all, shareholders were also the major actors in the plays

The Playwright• All playwrights at this time were men• Some were formally educated at Oxford or

Cambridge, but many were not• While Shakespeare himself was also an actor,

most playwrights stayed behind the scenes• A playwrights was paid incrementally

throughout the writing process, and if his play was accepted, he would receive a part of the profit

• Once he handed his play over to the company, it was no longer his, it was the companies

Actors

• With the major role already filled by the shareholdes, minor actors were hired by the company to act in small roles

• Rarely showe the same show two days in a row –pressure on actors was tremendous

• A good memory was helpful, but not 100% necessay– “Cue acting”

A Boys Club

• Women were not allowe to perform on stage until 1630

• Pre-pubescent boys were dressed in costume an played womens roles

Costumes

• Costumes were extremely elaborate during Shakespeare’s time

• Scenery was not, so often times the costumes would set the tone for the play

• Costumes were so important when trying to convincingly portray men as women

Setting the Scene (with no scenery)

• In order to inform their audience about the setting, Shakespeare and his contemporaries would always have a character mention something about the setting at the beginning of the scene if it was important to the play

The Plays themselves

• Whether knowingly or not, Shakespeare used a rigid structure that helped him write solidly-structured plays quickly

• The most important structure to know in the plot structure

Plot Structure of Tragedy

Exposition

Complication

Rising Action

Climax

Falling Action

Moment of final suspense

Catastrophe

Drama Terms

Types of Speech• Monologue: a long, interrupted speech

spoken in the presence of other characters• Soliloquy: a speech, usually lengthy, in

which a character, alone on stage, expresses his/her thoughts on stage

• Dialogue: conversation between two or more characters, (seeking a mutual understanding)

• Aside: words spoken by a character in a play, ususally in an undertone, not intended to be heard by other characters on stage

Character Types

• Chorus: a company of performers whose singing and narration provide explanation

• Foil: when one characters traits are different from the opposing character, therefore making one seem different then they are

• Protagonist: main character• Antagonist: opposes main

character

Other Key Terms• Prolouge: introduction to a piece of drama

before a performance– The prolouge in The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet

was delivered by the chorus

• Tragedy: a lay that tells of the destruction of a noble hero

• Comic relief: in a tragedy, a short comic scene that provieds respite from the building tension of the play

• Blank Verse: poetry written in unrhymed lamble pentameter line– “Two households, both alike in dignity/ In fair Verona

where we lay our scene”