William Shakespeare Information

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William Shakespeare Information

• William Shakespeare was a famous playwright in
  his day
• Lived from 1564 until 1616
• People came from all over the world to see
  Shakespeares performances
• Shakespeare wrote to the common people

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Globe Theater Facts

• The Globe could hold between 2,000 and 3,000
  people
• No lighting fixtures, plays were done during the
  daylight
• Open theater, no roof
• Sound acoustics were not goodactors had to shout
  lines and make exaggerated theatrical gestures

• No scenery changes, only indicated by speech that
  scene had changed
• No acts, only scenes
• Trap doors were used for plot enhancement
• No women actresses, only men--women were usually
  played by teenage boys
• Theaters located on outskirts of town

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The Original Globe

• The Globe was three stories high, 100 feet in
  diameter, and its stage was five feet high
• What roof there was, was thatched, very few props
  were used
• A cannon was always on stage, and it shot blanks
• The ceiling was called The Heavensit was
  beautifully painted to look like the sky
• There were two oak columns (painted like marble)
  holding up The Heavens
• Total of three stage entranceslarge middle
  covered by curtain and two side ones where actors
  came out

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Globe Theater Arrangement

• Seats were a first come, first serve basis for
  the groundlings or penny-stinkers
• Many groundlings stood around the stage, if they
  paid a little more they could sit on the stage
• Patrons (middle-class) paid a nickel for seats in
  the upper levels
• Royalty sat in the highest level, they did not
  have to pay

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And The Play Begins

• Once the play started
• First a flag was waved to signal a performance
  was occurring
• A trumpet would sound
• No programs were handed out, so theater-goers did
  not know what play they would see

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Some Final Globe Facts

• The first play performed in The Globe Theater was
  Julius Caesar in 1599
• Shakespeare wrote and performed in plays in the
  Globe
• Shakespeare plays were successful for many years
• During a performance of Henry VIII in 1613 a
  spark from the cannon set the thatched roof on
  fireit took less than an hour for the Globe to
  burn down, luckily no one was hurt
• The Globe Theater has been rebuilt and you can
  see Shakespeares plays in it to this day

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Todays Globe Theater