Staging in Shakespeare's theatres
By: Andrew Gurr and Mariko Ichikawa.
Contributors: Ichikawa, Mariko.
Series: Oxford Shakespeare topics
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2000
Place of publication: Oxford; New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 181
Subjects: Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 -- Stage history -- To 1625; Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 -- Stage history -- England -- London; Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 -- Dramatic production; Theater -- England -- Production and direction -- History -- 16th century; Theater -- England -- Production and direction -- History -- 17th century; Theaters -- England -- London -- History -- 16th century; Theaters -- England -- London -- History -- 17th century
Description: By bringing together evidence from different sources--documentary, archaeological, and the play-texts themselves--Staging Shakespeare's Theatres reconstructs the ways in which the plays were originally staged in the theaters of Shakespeare's own time, and shows how the physical possibilities and limitations of these theaters affected both the writing and the performances. The book explains the conditions under which the early playwrights and players worked, their preparation of the plays for the stage, and their rehearsal practices. It looks at the quality of evidence supplied by the surviving play-texts, and the extant to which audiences of the time differed from modern audiences; and it gives vivid examples of how Elizabethan actors made use of gestures, costumes, props, and the theater's specific design features. Stage movement is analyzed through a careful study of how exits and entrances worked on such stages. The final chapter offers a thorough examination of Hamlet as a text for performance, excitingly returning the play to its original staging at the Globe.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. [175]-176) and index.