by: Ryan Trevino

During the first years of Queen Elizabeths reign, inns, inn yards, college halls and private houses were used for their performances by the English playing companies. This was successful for 20 years.

In 1576 the original Globe's construction was built by James Burbage in Shoreditch. The company, which included Burbage and Shakespeare, officially owned the theatre, but later their lease on the land expired.

In 1597, Shakespeare's company erected the Globe Theatre board by board and built in London's Bankside district It seems that the company's lease had a provision that allowed them to disassemble the building themselves. It was rebuilt by carpenter, Peter Smith and his workers. It was the most wonderful theater that London had ever seen. This theatre could hold several thousand people!

The Globe Theatre was located on the South bank of the river Thames in Southwark. But because it was located on the other side of the river, laws did not have to be followed. Gambling and other immoral things were occurring near and around the Globe Theatre.

It was open-air, octagonal amphitheater which rose three stories high with a diameter of approximately 100 feet. It could seat up to 3,000 viewers. The rectangular stage platform on which the performers stood on was nearly 43 feet wide and 28 feet deep. This staging area probably had a trap doors in its flooring.

This sketch is very important in theatrical history. In 1596, a Dutch student, Johannes de Witt attended a play in London at the Swan Theatre. While He was there, de Witt made a drawing of the inside of the theatre. A friend, Arend van Buchell, copied his drawing. This drawing is van Buchell's copy. The sketch is the only surviving proof of an Elizabethan-era public theatre. It's the only closest thing historians have to an original picture of what the Globe may have looked like in at that time.

In 1613, the original Globe Theatre burned to the ground when a cannon shot during a performance of Henry VIII. It caught the thatched roof of the gallery on fire.

The company build a new Globe on the same grounds before Shakespeare's death. It was in operation until 1642, when the Puritans closed it down and all the other theatres where people were being entertained.

The Globe theatres motto was "Totus mundus agit histrionem" ( the whole world is a playhouse ).

Women were not allowed to work as actors. Female roles were taken by young men who wore women's clothing and elaborate make-up.

Different colored flags were used to advertise the themes of plays which were to be performed at the Globe Theatre. A black flag indicated a tragedy, a white flag indicated a comedy and a red flag indicated a history.

In 1644 two years later, the Puritans destroyed the building to build apartments The Globe would remain a ghost for the next 352 years.

In 1997, hundreds of years later and only 200 yards away from its original site, the new Globe theatre was built and reopened.

Here is a short video clip on the Globe Theatre.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyGD_ kffqU0