Shakespeare Notes English 1 April, 2011

Shakespeare Notes English 1 April, 2011

The Life and Times of William Shakespeare

1.Since the plots are so varied and deal with manysocial and political issues, Shakespeare’s actual views remain mysterious.

1. Shakespeare’s actual birthday is recognized as April 23, 1564.
2. He was born in the small English town of Stratford-upon-Avon.
3. He married Anne Hathaway in 1582; he was 18, and she was 26.
4. They had three children together: Susanna and twins, Judith and Hamnet.
5. Even as Shakespeare became a successful playwright, he continued to act with a small company of players.
6. Elizabeth 1 was the queen when Shakespeare began his career; unfortunately, in the early 1590’s, the plague in London led to the closing of all theatres.
7. Shakespeare wrote poetry at this time, including his famous sonnets.
8. When the theatres reopened in 1594, Shakespeare helped

form the acting company called Lord Chamberlain’s Men;

the company started its own theatre—the Globe.

10.The Globe was popular with the wealthy and common

folks.

11.On April 23, 1616, Shakespeare died at age 52; this

was also his birthday. Shakespeare wrote 37 plays, 154

sonnets, and two narrative poems. His plays fall into

three categories: tragedies, comedies, and histories.

The Elizabethan Stage

1. The Elizabethan Stage was round, so the audience was highly involved in the performance; actors often spoke to the audience through soliloquies and asides.
2. During the Elizabethan period, politicians and clergy were opposed to the theatre, claiming it was a dangerous diversion from religion.
3. When a play was about to begin, it was announced with a raised flag and a trumpeted fanfare; the flag indicated the theme of that day’s play: black for tragedy, white for comedy, and red for history.
4. Groundlings sat in the penny seats, in a type of mob atmosphere.
5. The theatre could hold close to 3,000 people.
6. The stage consisted of three tiers or levels: heaven earth, and hell.
7. A trapdoor in the main stage was used to lower actors into and out of hell.
8. Unlike today’s movies and plays, scenery and props were limited; actors described the time of day or night.
9. Women were not allowed to act on stage so young boys played female roles.
10. Actors only had about a week to learn their parts—up to 800 lines a day for leading roles!