Shakespeare`s Globe Theatre is one of the most recognisable and most visited places in London. Every year, hundreds of thousands of tourists from all over the world come here: some to see a performance as it was seen in Shakespeare`s time, others to touch the history of the theatre, and still others simply to stand in the yard under the open sky and imagine how the voice of the great playwright once sounded here.
But behind the outward simplicity of this round wooden building lies a complex and dramatic history. The "Globe" that tourists see today is the third building on the site. The first theatre burned to the ground in a single hour in 1613. The second was closed by the Puritans and demolished in 1644. The third opened only in 1997 — more than three hundred and fifty years later — and became the life`s work of the American actor Sam Wanamaker.
The First Globe (1599–1613)
In 1599, the company "The Lord Chamberlain`s Men", to which Shakespeare belonged, was in urgent need of a new venue. Their previous theatre — "The Theatre" in Shoreditch — stood on land whose lease had expired, and the landowner did not wish to renew the agreement. The company found a solution that still seems audacious today: they dismantled "The Theatre" beam by beam, transported the timber across the Thames, and reassembled it on the south bank, in Southwark. Thus the first Globe was born.
It was a round wooden building formed by twenty sides, each three storeys high. The roof was covered with Norfolk reed — thatch. The walls were daubed with lime. The stage also had a canopy, likewise covered with thatch. The central yard, or "pit", remained open to the sky: having paid one penny, a spectator stood here and watched the performance standing.
In 1613, disaster struck. During a performance of "Henry VIII", a stage cannon used for special effects sparked — and the thatched roof caught fire. According to the chronicles, the theatre burned to the ground in about an hour. There were no human casualties, but the building and all its property were lost.
The Second Globe (1614–1644)
The following year the company rebuilt the theatre. This time the roof was made of tiles — tiles cost more, but they did not burn so easily. The second Globe prospered until 1642, when the Puritan Parliament, having come to power, closed all the theatres of London as "sources of depravity". In 1644 the building was demolished, and on its site tenement houses were built. The exact location of the Globe was forgotten for almost three hundred years.
The Third Globe (1997 — the present day)
The third Globe — the one tourists visit today — owes its existence to one man: the American actor and director Sam Wanamaker. In 1936, as a young actor, he first stepped onto the stage in a Shakespearean production at the World`s Fair in Cleveland — a model of the Elizabethan Globe had been built there. This experience changed his life.
In 1949 Wanamaker moved to London and began a twenty-year odyssey collecting materials about Elizabethan theatres. In 1949 he discovered in the archives a plan of the Globe drawn up in 1600. In 1970 he founded the "Shakespeare Globe Trust". In 1989, after long archaeological excavations, it became possible to establish precisely the location of the first Globe — beneath a car park in Southwark. The excavations yielded invaluable information about the theatre`s construction.
The new Globe opened in 1997 — approximately 200 metres from the original site. It is the most accurate possible reproduction of an Elizabethan theatre: oak beams, lime plaster, a thatched roof (the only one permitted in London after the fire of 1666). Wanamaker did not live to see the opening — he died in 1993 — but his work was continued.
Shakespeare and the Globe: plays born of the stage
To understand Shakespeare, one must understand the space for which he wrote. The Globe is not an abstract "stage" but a highly concrete, living place, and its design directly shaped the dramaturgy.
Shakespeare as a shareholder
Shakespeare was not merely a playwright. He was a shareholder in the company — that is, he received a share of the takings. This means that his creative work was from the very beginning bound up with the commercial survival of the theatre. He wrote not for eternity, but for a specific evening, a specific audience, a specific box office.
The audience of the Globe
The audience on the south bank of the Thames was far more motley than on the north bank. Here were boatmen, craftsmen, merchants, prostitutes, minor officials — and at the same time aristocrats, foreign ambassadors, spies. Tickets cost from one penny for a place in the yard to six pence for a box. One penny was the price of a loaf of bread. That is, an apprentice could skip lunch and watch "Hamlet".
This structure of the audience directly shaped Shakespeare`s manner. He had to satisfy three types of spectator simultaneously in a single performance:
• those standing in the yard for a penny — commoners — wanted jokes, fights, coarse humour;
• those sitting in the gallery for two pence — townspeople — wanted plot and feeling;
• those sitting in a box for six pence — the gentry — wanted thought and verse.
Hence, for example, in "Macbeth" the coarse lines of the witches give way to the monologue "Life is but a walking shadow"; in "Hamlet" the jokes of the gravediggers give way to the monologue "To be or not to be". Shakespeare wrote in layers, addressing each level of the audience at the same time.
The design of the stage and the dramaturgy
The Globe`s stage thrust forward, the audience surrounded it on three sides, and the actors stood almost in the crowd. There was no curtain, no complex scene changes. That is why Shakespeare`s plays always flow continuously: one scene ends, the actors leave, the next enter at once — without a pause. That is why in his plays there is almost no concept of an "act", only a continuous stream of scenes.
At the rear of the stage was a "heavens" with a mechanism from which a "deity" could be lowered — thus "As You Like It" ends. In the floor of the stage were trapdoors from which a ghost or a gravedigger could suddenly appear — this is precisely how the ghost of the old king appears in "Hamlet".
And above all, the Globe was an open-air theatre. Performances began at two o`clock in the afternoon, in daylight. This means that Shakespeare wrote his plays counting on the spectator seeing the actor, not hearing him in the dark. Hence the importance of gesture, facial expression, physical presence.
The structure of the theatre: how the Globe is built
The modern Globe is the most accurate possible reproduction of an Elizabethan theatre. Here are its main elements:
External form
The building is round, formed by twenty sides. The diameter is about 30 metres. The height is about 12 metres. The walls are made of oak beams, the gaps filled with wattle and daubed with lime plaster. The roof is thatched, of Norfolk reed. This is the only thatched roof in London permitted after the fire of 1666.
Three tiers of galleries
Around the central yard run three tiers of covered galleries. Here are the seated places. In the Elizabethan era the galleries were covered but had no glass — spectators sat on wooden benches without backs. Today the galleries have benches with cushions (cushions can be hired for a small fee).
The yard ("pit")
The central yard under the open sky is the yard, or "pit". There are no seats here. Spectators stand. In the Elizabethan era a ticket here cost one penny. Today — five pounds. There is no roof in the yard, so in rain spectators get wet. This is part of the authentic experience.
The stage
The stage thrusts into the yard, the spectators surround it on three sides. The stage is raised about one and a half metres. Above the stage is a canopy supported by two columns. The canopy protects the actors from rain and has a mechanism for lowering "deities". In the floor of the stage are trapdoors leading under the stage. Behind the stage is an "inner stage", closed by a curtain, where scenes "indoors" can take place. Above the stage is a balcony where musicians or actors can appear (the famous balcony scene in "Romeo and Juliet").
"Heavens" and "hell"
The ceiling above the stage is painted with images of celestial bodies — this is the "heavens". The space beneath the stage is "hell", from which ghosts, devils and gravediggers appear through the trapdoors.
The Globe today: how it works
Today`s Globe is not a museum but a working theatre. Performances are held here, tours are conducted, and educational programmes operate.
Season and repertoire
The season at the Globe runs from April to October. In winter the theatre is closed, because it is open-air: in the cold season it is impossible to perform here. The repertoire includes plays by Shakespeare and his contemporaries. Each season several Shakespearean plays are staged — from the most famous ("Hamlet", "Romeo and Juliet", "A Midsummer Night`s Dream") to the rare ("Timon of Athens", "King John").
Principles of production
The Globe adheres to the principles of "Original Practice". This means:
• performances take place in daylight, without complex lighting;
• there is no curtain — scenes flow continuously;
• the sets are minimal — their role is played by costumes and props;
• the actors see the audience and interact with it;
• music is performed live on authentic instruments.
However, the Globe is not a museum theatre. Experimental versions are also staged here: for example, "Hamlet" with a woman in the leading role, or "Othello" in modern dress. The theatre seeks to show that Shakespeare is a living author, not a museum exhibit.
Tours
When no performance is taking place, tours of the theatre are conducted. The guide tells the history of the Globe, how the stage is built, how actors performed in the Elizabethan era. You can see the costume workshops, the rehearsal rooms, and look under the stage.
Exhibition and education
The theatre has a permanent exhibition devoted to Shakespeare and the Elizabethan theatre. Here you can see models, costumes, instruments and archival documents. Educational programmes are held for schoolchildren and students.
Today the Globe is not only a theatre but also a research centre. Here they study how performances were given in the Elizabethan era, how Shakespeare`s language sounded, how actors and audience interacted. The Globe`s productions tour all over the world. The theatre has become a symbol of the fact that Shakespeare belongs not only to England but to all humanity.
