- Inn-yards:
- Performances held in private London Inns.
- Inexpensive (1 to 3 pennies) - but additional fees for balcony levels
- Held indoors or the yard.
- Audience capacity up to 500.
- Major inns had large cobblestoned yards.
- Some Inn-yards were eventually converted to Playhouses.
- Indoor Playhouses:
- A small, private indoor venue with a roof.
- Small fee, but more expensive with more select audiences. (2 to 26 pennies).
- Audience capacity up to 500.
- Suitable for winter and evening performances.
- Lighted by candles so suitable for the evening.
- Good acoustics. Music and song was strongly featured.
- Food and drink was served in the interval.
- Beautiful scenery introduced.
During this period was William Shakespeare’s work. He wrote
many tragedy plays (including “Hamlet” [1599 – 1602], “Othello” [1603] and “Romeo
and Juliet”) and comedy plays (including “Midsummer Night’s Dream” [1590 – 1597],
“Much Ado About Nothing” [1598 and 1599] and “Twelfth Night” [1601 and 1602]. Shakespeare used levels in his work to show authority between people.
Also, during this period was Christopher Marlowe's work. His plays are known for the use of blank verse and overreached protagonists. His plays were tragedies and they included "The Jew of Malta" [1589-1590] and "Doctor Faustus" [1604].
John Fletcher was another playwright at this time, writing both comedy and tragedy plays. His work includes the tragedy "Valentinian" [1610-1614], the comedy "Wit Without Money" [1614] and the tragicomedy "The Wild Goose Chase" [1621].
Tragedy plays:
- The main character will die
- The death of the main character can not be by accident
- The audience must love the hero more than anyone else
Plays were normally performed in proscenium arch, though thrust was also used. Playwrights at this time wrote in a way to encourage the audience to imagine the sets. These plays were also written very practically as they didn't use blackouts to change sets; a way to clear the stage was worked into the narrative. As the plays were put together in a short amount of time, the actors tended to wear the clothing of their day. However, as women were not allowed to act at this time, young boys were used to play these roles. These costumes were very elaborate, consisting of many layers. The makeup used for these roles contained a lot of lead so was actually poisonous, giving the young actors unpleasant facial skin diseases.
Presentational Acting Style:
Plays at this time were more of a "performance" with clue the actors were aware of the audience's presence (instead of completely ignoring the audience). Prologues, epilogues and word puns were also to engage the audiences. Extravagant gestures were commonly found too.
How this era of theatre began:
Medieval theatre was the era of theatre before Elizabethan. Medieval theatre ended as the power of the Church and of religion in general decreased; it was the Church who had controlled theatre and put it in place during this time (as it wasn't around for a long time before this).
How this era of theatre ended:
This era ended when both Elizabeth I and James VI died. After this, there was a period when the country did not have a monarch and was run by the government. A group called the Puritans came in and demolished theatre. They disagreed with it as it distracted people from the Church.
