Elizabethan Theater: A Popular Form of Entertainment During the Elizabethan Era

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pressure forced the English Parliament to issue an ordinance that suppressed all stage plays in the theaters, and they ended up taking the Globe Theatre down, replacing it with housing.

The many playwrights and the types of plays that they wrote and performed also contributed to the popularity of the Elizabethan theater. As noted before, William Shakespeare was among one of the more noted playwrights of the time. He wrote and produced plays such as Othello, Julius Caesar, Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, and Macbeth. Many of these plays were as popular then as they are today, and are still being performed today. Another popular playwright, Christopher Marlowe, wrote popular and famous plays such as The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus and The Tragedy of Edward II. Marlowe greatly influenced Shakespeare and many other playwrights followed his style. Lack of copyright laws during the time made it easy for playwrights to ‘borrow’ materials from other playwrights. Cork Milner states in an article that he wrote, “Copyright laws did not exist in Shakespeare’s time, and playwrights were free to borrow plots and dialogue from other source. Dialogue in the three Henry VI plays , for example was borrowed directly from the Chronicles.” Milner also notes that Julius Caesar and Antony and Cleopatra, plays attributed to William Shakespeare, may have been borrowed from Plutarch’s Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans (Milner).

The plays performed by the acting companies that made them so popular included comedies, tragedies, and jigs. The comedies perfumed then were not the same as the comedies as we know them today. Comedies then were simply plays with satire, farce and happy endings. The comedies enjoyed today don’t include much, if any, satire or farce. Examples of Elizabethan comedy plays would be The Tempest and Twelfth Night, written by William Shakespeare and The Alchemist by Ben Johnson (Carver). Tragic plays usually involved noble characters and concluded with a tragic ending that lead to all of the main characters being deceased. Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, is a good example of a tragic play. A lesser known type of play enjoyed by Elizabethan era called jigs, involved rude and sexual plays. These plays were usually performed after the main comedy or tragedy and included slapstick comedy, singing, and clowning (Carver).

Special effects were very entertaining to the audience and also made Elizabethan plays popular. As the popularity of the theater increased as well as the increase in the availability of money, the owners of the theaters were able to include many different types of special effects, which added to the effectiveness of the plays. Sound effects rang out by way of fireworks and cannons to simulate a battle scenes in some historical plays, which greatly added to the excitement of the plays. Music also added to the special effects of the plays. Used to fit the mood of the play, trumpets heralded royalty entrances, drums simulated marching during battle, and cymbals created the effect of rain and thunder (Belcher). The Globe and the Blackfriars Playhouse were built with special effects in mind. They built trapdoors into the floor of the stage, called ‘Trapdoors from Hell’, which allowed for actors to make spectacular entrances. They called the area below the stage hell, hence the name ‘Trapdoors from Hell’ (Belcher). Some theaters had false ceilings above the stage which they called ‘The Heavens’ that allowed for paint to hide several trap doors built into the ceiling. These ceiling trap doors hid pulleys and hoists that lowered and lifted backdrops, props, or actors for entrances and exits (Belcher). To make plays seem even more real and believable, they used blood effects. To simulate a wounded or murdered character, they used a handkerchief soaked in animal blood. When they wanted to simulate a large amount of gore they used sheep or oxen blood. Michael Belcher in his article entitled, “Special Effects in the Theater During the Elizabethan Era”, he states, “ In larger productions, a sheep or oxen bladder would be filled with blood and strapped under the actor’s clothing. When it was hit with a stage knife or sword, the bursting bladder would add a large amount of gore to a death or a battle scene.” These special effects definitely added to popularity of the Elizabethan theater.

The distinct aspect of the Elizabethan era contributed to it being an important time in England’s history. That era marked a time of great change that lead to exciting forms of expression in theaters. Inn-yards, amphitheaters, and playhouses made a significant impact on the English people. Playwrights such as William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, and Ben Johnson helped make Elizabethan theater so successful. From them came great and exciting plays that we still enjoy today. The type of plays performed and the special effects offered a great deal of excitement to the plays and greatly added to the popularity of the plays. The Elizabethan theater will always be remembered as one of the greatest aspects of the Elizabethan era and one of the greatest times in England’s history.

Works Cited

Alchin, L. K. “Elizabethan Playhouses.” Elizabethan Theatre. Elizabethan Era, 16 May 2012. Web. 30 Nov. 2014

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2. Belcher, Michael. "Special Effects in the Theater During the Elizabethan Era."

Entertainment Guide. Demand Media, n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2014.

<http://entertainmentguide.local.com/special-effects-theater-during-elizabethan-era-4056.html>

3. Carver, Leslie. “Types of Plays Written during the Elizabethan Period. “Entertainment Guide.

Demand Media, n.d. Web. 3 Dec. 2014.

<http://entertainmentguide.local.com/types-plays-written-during-elizabethan-period-10115.html>

4. "Elizabethan Theater, Playhouses & Inn-Yards." Elizabethan Theater, Inn-yards and

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5. "The Elizabethan Era Theaters in England, Stages, Amphitheaters, Inn-yards and Playhouses." Elizabethan