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The Globe Theatre of 1599

"Things done well and with a care, exempt themselves from fear"

The Globe Theatre in London was where most of William Shakespeare's plays were first presented. It was built in 1599 by two brothers, Richard and Cuthbert Burbage, who owned its predecessor 'The Theatre' at Shoreditch in north London. Before 1599 the Lord Chamberlain's Men performed in public primarily at The Theatre, which had been leased by James Burbage, father of Richard. 

In the winter of 1598 the lease on this theatre was due to expire because of an increase in rent to a level which the Globe's company could no longer afford. The landlord was Giles Allen, a puritan, and disapproved of theatrical entertainment. The Chamberlain's Men were forced to move to The Curtain, another public playing house near The Theatre. In the meantime the Theatre stood empty. (At this time, while considering alternative playing houses, Burbage purchased the Blackfriars for £600, within the city but under the control of the crown, and not city officials who were almost definitely anti-players. The local residents protested however, so it would be years before the players were allowed to use the Blackfriars as a playhouse.) Negotiations to move back in to The Theatre were at an impasse, the landlord being exceedingly avaricious. In the meantime James Burbage died, leaving the struggle to his two sons. Allen's intentions was to demolish the Theatre and to "...convert the wood and timber thereof to some better use..." (S Schoenbaum: 'William Shakespeare A Documentary Life', Oxford, 1975).

However, the company owned the wood from which the theatre was built. In the winter after the rent increase, members dismantled the building piece by piece, shipped it across the Thames to Southwark on the south bank and reassembled it there. Allen was powerless to do anything, reporting of the dismantling party (in Schoenbaum's book, p 153) as:

"ryotous...armed...with divers and manye unlawfull and offensive weapons...in verye ryotous outragious and forcyble manner and contrarye to the lawes of your highnes Realme...and there pulling breaking and throwing downe the sayd Theater in verye outragious violent and riotous sort to the great disturbance and terrefyeing not onlye of your subjectes [that Allen claimed were attempting to stop them]...but of divers others of your majesties loving subjectes there neere inhabitinge."

The reconstructed theatre was completed in 1599 and was renamed 'The Globe'. Built by carpenter Peter Smith the building was the most magnificent theatre that London had ever seen. It was situated just a few hundred metres from the Rose Theatre, run by Philip Henslowe and his son in law Edward Alleyn, the famous actor of the time (famous for his portrayal of Marlowe's great characters). A year later and feeling the pressure of competition, Henslowe and Alleyn moved to new quarters, building the Fortune Theatre in St. Giles without Cripplegate.

Shares of the new theatre were divided between the Burbage brothers, the land owner Sir Nicholas Brend, and five members of the Lord Chamberlain's men: Shakespeare, John Heminges, Augustine Phillips, Thomas Pope and William Kemp. It worked so that the Burbage brothers were responsible for half the lease on the land and shared in half the profits. The five players were responsible for the other half of the lease and shared among themselves the other half of the profits. Shakespeare's share, as a 'householder' was one-fifth of fifty percent of the profits, or 10% of the total profits. Kemp later departed the Chamberlain's Men so Shakespeare's share increased in value, but soon two new partners - Will Slye and Henry Condell joined them, so that his share decreased again. In any event, these were the ownership provisions of the Globe and the foundation of Shakespeare's prosperity. It is not possible to determine exactly how much Shakespeare earned, but the common consensus among scholars is that it was somewhere near £200 - £250 per year, a very substantial sum by Elizabethan standards. After The Globe had been reopened The Lord Chamberlain's Men continued to perform there. Shakespeare created his plays with his unique venue in mind.

The exact physical structure of the Globe is unknown, although scholars are fairly sure of some details because of drawings from the period. The theatre itself was a closed structure with an open courtyard where the stage stood. Tiered galleries around the open area accommodated the wealthier patrons who could afford seats, and those of the lower classes - the 'groundlings' - stood around the platform or 'thrust' stage during the performance of a play. The space under and behind the stage was used for special effects, storage and costume changes. Surprisingly, although the entire structure was not very big by modern standards, it is thought to have been capable of accommodating fairly large crowds - perhaps as many as 2000 people - during a performance.

The Globe may have been designed similarly to another of its time - The Fortune. It is said to have been shaped like a cylinder with a thatched gallery roof which was made of straw. The roof had to be coated with a special fire-protectant. In 1613 the roof was accidentally set on fire by a cannon during a performance of Henry VIII. The entire theatre burned in about an hour. The Globe was rebuilt a year later but with a tilted gallery roof and more circular in shape. In 1644, 30 years after it was rebuilt the Globe was torn down.

The 1614 reconstruction of The Globe

In 1603 Queen Elizabeth died and James VI of Scotland became James I of England. The Jacobean age was initiated. Its practical impact was that the Lord Chamberlain's Men, the most popular acting company under the old queen, became the King's Men and continued to receive royal patronage. No company performed more at court over these years. Between 1 November 1604 and 31 October 1605 the King's Men performed 11 performances before the King. Seven of these performances were of Shakespeare's own plays: The Comedy of Errors, Love's Labour's Lost, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Othello, Measure for Measure and two of The Merchant of Venice. In spite of the emphasis on comedy, the new reign was known for its cynicism. There was a marked shift to darkness in Shakespeare's works of this period.

The theatre was rebuilt in 1614 but 30 years later was demolished by Puritans. A brewery now stands on the site.

Key Dates of the original Globe Theatre:

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