and The Globe Theatre

1. and The Globe Theatre

2. About William Shakespeare • Nobody knows when Shakespeare’s birthday was. • He was born in 1564, but there is no record of the actual day. • He was baptized at the Holy Trinity Church on April the 26th in Stratford-upon-Avon. • Scholars count back 3 days earlier and celebrate his birthday on April the 23rd.

3. Was he real? • Many people dispute the fact that he is real. • His unknown birthday raises the brows of skeptics. • As well as his looks…no one really knows what he looks like. • But most people today consider Shakespeare the greatest of all dramatists. • His plays demonstrate a profound understanding of the nature of humanity. • There are theories that Shakespeare's plays were actually written by someone else- or many others! • Perhaps someone more highly educated. • Names suggested include the statesman and philosopher Sir Francis Bacon, Christopher Marlowe, the Earl of Southampton (Shakespeare's patron), Edward de Vere, the seventeenth Earl of Oxford and even Queen Elizabeth.

4. Generally Accepted Facts • William Shakespeare was born in 1564. • Was the third child and first son of John Shakespeare and his wife Mary Arden. • Born in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. • John Shakespeare was a landowner, a merchant, a glove maker, and a man on a political track. • In 1567 he became "high bailiff," the highest elected office in Stratford, equivalent to a mayor today.

5. Family Man? • In 1582, at the age of eighteen, he married Anne Hathaway, the daughter of a farmer from the nearby village of Shottery. In 1583, they had a daughter, Susanna, and then twins, Hamnet and Judith, in 1585. • Later, he had 5 more children • (8 total during his short, 52 years of life)

6. Did he only write plays? • Shakespeare became a charter member of a theatrical company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, in 1594. • He first worked in theatres owned by James Burbage northeast of London, the Theatre and the Curtain. • In 1598 Burbage moved to Bankside, along the Thames River, and built the Globe Theatre. • As a partner in the Globe, (and later the Blackfriars Theatre, acquired in 1608), Shakespeare profited from its success. • His plays were performed at the courts of Queen Elizabeth I and King James I, who became sponsor of his theatrical troupe in 1603. Its name was changed to the King's Men. • In conclusion, Shakespeare was a prospering Businessman able to buy some of the most prestigious properties in all of Stratford.

7. Shakespeare’s Work • Shakespeare's body of work is generally divided up into four major periods. • FIRST PERIOD: His early plays (1589-95) were somewhat experimental. They include chronicle history plays, a popular genre of the period which featured medieval tragedies played out in bloody detail, and a range of comedies (A Midsummer’s Night Dream). • SECOND PERIOD: Shakespeare's second period (to 1600) included important plays dealing with English history, his "joyous" comedies and two major tragedies. His technique became individualized and distinct as he began to combine elements of the tragic and the comic to reveal the vast sweep of humanity.

8. Shakespeare’s Work (continued) • THIRD PERIOD: Great tragedies, considered his most profound work, were written during the third period (to 1608) of Shakespeare's career. These included Hamlet, Othello, King Lear and Macbeth. He also wrote pensive and biting comedies during this time. • FOURTH PERIOD: During his fourth period (to 1613) Shakespeare wrote his primary romantic tragicomedies including The Tempest, considered by many to be Shakespeare's most beautiful and lyrical play.

9. Reading Shakespeare’s Plays • Before you start to read Shakespeare's plays, you will want to take a look at some of the language uses that might stand in your way of understanding the script. • Did people really speak the way they do in Shakespeare's plays?  The answer is NO. 

10. Then why did he write that way? • To confuse you!!!! No, of course not. • Shakespeare wrote the way he did for poetic and dramatic purposes.  • There are many reasons why he did this--to create a specific poetic rhythm, to emphasize a certain word, to give a character a specific speech pattern, etc.

11. I ate the sandwich. I ate the sandwich.I the sandwich ate.Ate the sandwich I.Ate I the sandwich.The sandwich I ate.The sandwich ate I.

12. A Closer Look • These four words can create six unique sentences which carry the same meaning.  • When you are reading Shakespeare's plays, look for this type of unusual word arrangement.  • Locate the subject, verb, and the object of the sentence.  Notice that the object of the sentence is often placed at the beginning (the sandwich) in front of the verb (ate) and subject (I).  Rearrange the words in the order that makes the most sense to you (I ate the sandwich).  • This will be one of your first steps in making sense of Shakespeare's language.

13. Poetry and Prose • We speak in prose (language without metrical structure).  Shakespeare wrote both prose and verse (poetry).  • Blank Verse:  unrhymed iambic pentameter. • Iambic Pentameter:  five beats of alternating unstressed and stressed syllables; ten syllables per line. • Examples of Iambic Pentameter: 'So fair / and foul / a day / I have / not seen' 'The course / of true / love nev/er did / run smooth'

14. Fun Fact 1 • Was Shakespeare popular during his own time? Yes or No? YES! Unlike many famous artists and poets he was a well known performer for Queen Elizabeth I.

15. Fun Fact 2 • How many plays did Shakespeare write? 37 Thirty-seven! Can you name at least 5?

16. Shakespeare’s Plays TRAGEDIES Antony and CleopatraCoriolanusHamletJulius CaesarKing LearMacbethOthelloRomeo and JulietTimon of AthensTitus AndronicusTroilus and Cressida HISTORIES Cymbelin Henry IV, Part IHenry IV, Part IIHenry VHenry VI, Part IHenry VI, Part IIHenry VI, Part IIIHenry VIIIKing JohnPericlesRichard IIRichard III COMEDIES All's Well That Ends WellAs You Like ItComedy of ErrorsLove's Labour's LostMeasure for MeasureMerchant of VeniceMerry Wives of WindsorMidsummer Night's DreamMuch Ado about NothingTaming of the ShrewTempestTwelfth NightTwo Gentlemen of VeronaWinter's Tale

17. Fun Fact 3 • Did Shakespeare invent words? Yes or No? YES! One of the words he invented was “assassination”. He is said to have a vocabulary of 29,066 words when the average person is said to only have 2,000. He was literally a walking dictionary!

18. Journal Entry • Describe what it’s like going to the movies today. Please answer ALL the questions below! • *What is the food like? • *What are the ticket prices? • *How are seating arrangements? • *What is the sound like? • *Where do you prefer to sit? • *Why do you go to the movies? • *Who do you usually go to the movies with? • *What is your favorite genre of movie? (i.e. drama, comedy, romance, action, etc)

19. Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre

20. The Globe Theatre • Also known as the Shakespeare Globe Theatre • One of most famous playhouses ever • The primary location Shakespeare performed many of his greatest plays • Construction • Built from oak and stolen playhouse frames • 3 story building • Holds 3000 • Co-owned by William Shakespeare

21. Tickets and Seating • “The Cheap Seats” • 1 cent! (roughly 10 % of a worker’s daily wage) • Standing room only in the yard at the center of the playhouse • Located nearest the stage, at eye level • Exposed, similar to a present day stadium • “Best seats in the house” • Only 2 cents! • Seating provided • Located in the playhouse’s 3 circular galleries

22. Imagination required of the audience: Lacked- Backdrops Lighting Poor acoustics Few if any props. To compensate- Actors exaggerated movements Shouted lines to be heard by all Watching a Play

23. Because there was no artificial lighting, plays typically occurred in the early afternoon, lasting from 2 pm until roughly 4 or 5 pm. Showtimes

24. Burnt to the ground • Burnt to the Ground June 29th, 1613 • Occurred during a performance of Henry VIII • Caused by cannon fired during the play • Cannon ignited the straw roof on fire • Rebuilt one year later • Reopened at a new location (opposite side of the Thames river) in 1614 • Straw roof replaced with tile • Remains open today

25. What we eat, what they ate. • Today at the movies we eat popcorn, candy, nachos, soda etc. • Is this healthy? Yes or No NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

26. Did you say hazelnut? • This is what the Elizabethans would munch on while enjoying a play at the Globe. • Also known as Filberts or Cob nuts depending on their country of origin. • They contain a high proportion of essential oils and a well-balanced mixture of vitamins and minerals.

27. Vitamin A, B and E • Hazelnuts contain a high concentration of Vitamin E and Vitamin A • Vitamin E removes toxins from your body. • Vitamin A is a natural antioxidant and also has cancer preventing properties. • Hazelnuts also contain Vitamins B5 and B6. • Vitamin B5 and B6, when consumed in appropriate amounts, are used by the body to produce energy. • Moreover, hazelnuts are an excellent source of minerals such as manganese, selenium, and zinc. • Minerals are essential in the body’s everyday function.

28. Mmmm…Popcorn Why is movie theater popcorn so much worse than the supermarket variety? • Movie theaters use trans fats to pop popcorn (saturated coconut oil) • Trans fats greatly contribute to heart disease, the number one cause of death in the United States • Unsaturated fats are liquids (cooking oil) • Saturated fats are solids at room temperature (butter) • Trans fats are unsaturated fat that has been chemically engineered into a solid that look just like saturated fats (margarine)

29. Theatre Popcorn • X Rated- AMC, Edwards, Hoyts, Regal, United Artists • Partially Hydrogenated Oils (Trans Fat) • R Rated- Carmike, CineMark, Cineplex Odeon, Loews, Multiplex, Muvico, Showcase • Saturated Fats (Butter) • PG Rated- Century, GKC • Unsaturated Fats (Vegetable Oil) • G Rated- Your Theater (assuming you can sneak some in) • Air-Popped (No added fats) The big theaters use trans-fat because it comes in a small package! Liquids converted to solids pack smaller than the original liquid!

30. Are You a Health Nut? • Were the Elizabethan’s healthier than you are now? • Does this make you think about your own eating habits when you go to the movies or even in your daily life?