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The Elizabethan Theater: Structure and Performance in Shakespeare's Time

The Elizabethan theater, an open-air venue designed roughly in a circular shape, was essential for showcasing Shakespeare's plays. Located in courtyard inn spaces, it featured galleries but had no roof over the central part, relying on daylight for performances typically held at 2 PM. With no female actors, young boys portrayed women, while book holders assisted with actors' lines. The audience interacted closely, with the common folk standing in the 'pit' area, experiencing two-hour performances enriched with music and visual effects like fireworks.

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The Elizabethan Theater: Structure and Performance in Shakespeare's Time

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  1. William Shakespeare The Elizabethan Theater

  2. Roughly circular building – designed on the courtyard of an inn • Having galleries and windows • Had no roof over the central part

  3. No stage lighting – plays were held at 2:00 in the afternoon

  4. Open-air theater – performances depended on the weather • Performances lasted about 2 hours

  5. Women did not act in the theater; young boys played the women’s parts.

  6. Book holders kept the scripts as each actor usually only received his own lines and not a complete script. Bookholders would help if an actor forgot his lines.

  7. Orchestra • The orchestra played in an area above the stage (3rd level). • Today they play in the pit. (orchestra pit)

  8. Stage Area • The stage area stuck out into the center audience area. There was a door on either side of the stage for exits and entrances.

  9. Pit Area • The yard below the stage was known as the pit. • Here the poor or common people would stand to watch • The floor of this area would often be covered with straw. • The poor were called groundlings, penny knaves, and stinkards.

  10. Curtain • There was a main curtain used for various purposes throughout the play.

  11. Trap Door • The Trap Door was used for certain entrances and exits. • Fireworks were often used as actors entered and exited the

  12. Balcony • The balcony was also used as part of the staging area. (i.e. Romeo and Juliet)

  13. Inner Stage • The theater had an inner stage which was usually concealed by a curtain. • Certain scenes would be acted out in this inner stage.

  14. Galleries • The wealthy filled the galleries which encircled the yard. • Gallery seats were just hard wooden benches w/o backs. • Royalty would occasionally sit on the stage itself in the earlier days of the theater.

  15. Audience • Audience interaction and participation was expected. Some parts of the scenes were even acted out in the audience.

  16. THE END

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