Shakespeare's Globe

Shakespeare’s original Globe Theatre was built in 1559 to become the home of the Chamberlain-King’s company and the only theatre where they publicly presented in London. Shakespeare himself belonged to this company and upon the Globe’s stage his major tragedies enjoyed their first performance. Located on what was once the marshy and dirty south bank of the Thames River, the Globe drew its audience from the north bank of the Thames (Beckerman ix). Overall, the Globe itself has become a symbol for the entire art form of drama. Its construction and success heralded in a time in which the success of the theatre has been rarely matched. The plays performed at the Globe were so successful that virtually all drama which was to come in England radiates from those years.

Construction of the Globe commenced on February 26, 1599 under the supervision of Peter Streete. It is now estimated that the Globe took approximately twenty eight to thirty weeks to complete and it is projected that the opening date was in August or September or 1599. It was officially in use until the year 1613 when it was destroyed by fire on June 29^th. It is recorded that the fire was set by a cannon accident during a production of Henry VIII (Brockett 168-169). Despite its short-lived career of only fourteen years, the Globe became a symbol for drama as a whole, propelling its influence into England’s future and making Shakespeare’s name famous forever.

At the instigation of the American actor, Sam Wanamaker, a new Globe Theatre was built in the early 90s. Attempting to make it as much like the original as possible, the new theatre was built according to a design based on the historical research of John Orrell (Hornby 633). The Globe was excavated before the building began, but its true dimensions remain unknown. Orrell argues that the Globe was a twenty sided circular building with an exterior diameter of approximately ninety nine feet and a yard diameter of seventy four feet. He estimates that the galleries were twelve and a half feet deep, and that the stage was forty three feet wide and twenty five feet deep. The new theatre is constructed as closely as possible to what is believed to be the original dimensions. It is also built on Bankside, approximately two hundred and twenty five yards from the original site. The new theatre also became the first thatched roof building permitted in London since the Great Fire of 1666 (Brockett 168).

Just as in the original Globe, the reconstructed theatre houses a stage that juts out into a large yard surrounded by three tiers of steep stadium seating. The only covered parts of the theatre are the stage and the seated areas. The theatre is allowed to seat 1600 people according to fire code though far more could fit to stand in the yard. Many have debated the actual originality of the rebuilt Globe. Obviously some modernizations were added, including additional lighting so that shows can be performed at night and sprinklers on the roof to protect against fire and a modern lobby, but holistically it is believed to be almost identical to the original. In his review of the rebuilt Globe, Richard Hornby suggests, that “the restored Globe in London may be too big. It may be historically inaccurate, or it may be too accurate for critics who like Shakespeare modernized. But, it is, nonetheless, the most exciting new kind of theatrical space to be constructed in recent years. It not only teaches us about Shakespeare in every production, it teaches us about theatre generally” (Hornby 633). Overall, despite its accuracy or inaccuracy, the Globe provides modern London citizens, as well as visitors from all over the world to experience a taste of Shakespeare’s world as close to historical correctness as possible.

Works Cited

Beckerman, Bernard. Shakespeare and the Globe. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1962.

Brockett, Oscar G. History of the Theatre. 7^th ed. Massachusetts: A Simon and Schuster Company, 1995.

Hornby, Richard. "Shakespeare's Globe." The Hudson Review 52.4, The British Issue (2000): 633-40.