Elizabethan Theatre

Introduction


The Elizabethan period is one of the greatest periods in English history. In many aspects her rule contributed not only to England but to whole civilization. During her rule theatre prospered and gave big writers such as Shakespeare, Marlowe, etc. Their dramas are played even today in big and famous theatres.
Italy, which had a big influence on Englishmen had also influence on English drama. The main topics are in Italy or in some Mediterranean countries. Actors were not so popular at the end of XVI century. They were treated like homeless people or beggars! In 1572 one decree was published against actors and they could work only if they were patronized by some lord. The first patron was Earl of Leicester, so “his” actors were called Earl of Leicester’s Men. After him there were many other earls who became patrons. After a while patronage became very popular so during the time of King James there were King’s Men.
Theatre performances were held in the afternoon, because, of course, there was no artificial lighting. Women attended plays, though often the prosperous woman would wear a mask to disguise her identity. Further, no women performed in the plays. Female roles were generally performed by young boys. Costumes were contemporary but in some dramas, where the topic was historical, costumes were old-fashioned.
Drama of this period had, perhaps, the biggest prosperity in the history of English literature, and like that survived centuries and those dramas are interesting to audience four centuries after their premiere.



Elizabethan England

The Tudor era saw the rise of modern commerce with cloth and weaving leading the way. A prosperous merchant class emerged from the ashes of the Wars of the Roses . The prosperity of the wool trade led to a surge in building in the active wool areas. "Wool churches" can be seen today in the Cotswolds, Lavenham, Leominster, and Stamford, among others. The importance of the wool trade in late medieval and Tudor England cannot be overstated. Witness the inscription carved on a monument in a wool church, "I thank God and ever shall, it was the sheep that payed for all".
The most expensive "honour" of all was that of housing Queen Elizabeth and her household. Elizabeth hit on the clever scheme of going on constant "progresses" about the country. Aside from the benefit of bringing her into closer contact with her subjects, she saved a great deal of money by making the nobles with whom she stayed foot the bill for her visit. Many nobles begged off the honour of her stay for fear of bankruptcy. Incidentally, the "progresses" of Elizabeth account for the fact that there are so many places today that advertise "Queen Elizabeth slept here". She slept just about everywhere.


Within the nobility there was a distinction between old families and new. Most old noble families were Catholic, and most new noble families were Protestant. The upper classes were exempt from the new oaths of allegiance to the Church of England, and many Catholic families maintained private chaplains.
It is easy to think of the nobility as the idle rich. They may have been rich (though not necessarily), but they certainly weren't allowed to be idle. Often, high office brought debt rather than profit. Honorific offices were unpaid, and visiting nobles to England were the responsibility of the English nobility to house and entertain at their own expense. Nobility had other expenses besides the monarch. They maintained huge households, and conspicuous consumption and lavish entertainment was expected. At first, noblemen didn’t go to watch plays in theatres. It was an entertainment for poor people. Sometimes, they were organizing private plays in their castles. In XVI century noble people started going to theatres and theatre became amusement for nobility also.