Globe theatre

views updated May 23 2018

Globe theatre. Built 1598/9 on Bankside in Southwark, by Richard Burbage the actor and his brother Cuthbert, its sign showed Hercules carrying the globe on his shoulders. The company used it during the summer since it was not roofed. Burned down in 1613 during an over-ambitious performance of Henry VIII, it was rebuilt but closed by the puritans in 1642 and demolished. Admission was a penny for the pit, twopence for the gallery, and threepence for seats. Shakespeare was both a shareholder and an actor and several of his plays, including Romeo and Juliet, Othello, Lear, and Macbeth, were first performed there. A replica of the first theatre was opened in 1996.

J. A. Cannon

Globe Theatre

views updated May 21 2018

Globe Theatre Elizabethan public theatre associated with William Shakespeare. Built in 1599 on Bankside, London, it had polygonal walls with a roof over the stage and galleries. Destroyed by fire in 1613 and rebuilt in 1614, it was closed by the Puritans in 1642 and demolished in 1644. The theatre was rebuilt and reopened in 1995, staging period performances.

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Globe Theatre

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