Globe Theatre

A round open-air theatre in London that is usually associated with William Shakespeare. Built in 1599, destroyed in 1613. Rebuilt, and finally torn down in 1644. Reconstructed as "Shakespeare's Globe" in 1997, though not at the original site. Also many modern replicas of the original theatre in London and elsewhere are called Globe.

The original Globe was located on the south side of the river Thames. It was built in 1599 by the Lord Chamberlain's Men, later called The King's Men, the theatre company in which Shakespeare was a shareholder. Until 1597, the Chamberlain's Men were the owners of the theatre at the north side of the river Thames, but after the lease contract had expired, they decided to build a new and modern theatre at the other side of the Thames. After the first Globe was destroyed in 1613 by a fire, which broke out during a performance, it was rebuilt, the thatched roof replaced by a tiled roof, at the same place and opened in July 1614. Due to the Civil War, it was closed down in 1642. In 1644, it was demolished, and flats were built where the Globe Theatre had once been. Some parts of its fundament that were left behind helped to identify the spot. In 1997, a reconstruction of the Globe was opened.

The Globe Theater was a round or octagonal half-timber house, with three storeys and approximately 30m in diameter. It was open-air and could house up to 3,000 people. At the stage's base, people (the groundlings) could watch the performance for a penny. The seats were more expensive, the higher the storey, the more people had to pay. The actors were very close to the people because the stage (Apron Stage) projected into the audience.

Sources:

Boshwer, Julian, Pat Miller. The Rose and the Globe - playhouses of Shakespeare's Bankside, Southwark. London: Museum of London Archaeology, 2009.

Gurr, Andrew. The Shakespearen stage, 1574-1642. Cambridge: CUP, 2009.

Schoenbaum, Samuel. Shakespeare's Lives. Oxford: Claredon Press, 1991

Schormann, Vanessa. Shakespeares Globe: Repliken, Rekonstruktionen und Beispielbarkeit. Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag Winter, 2002.