English Renaissance theatre

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English Renaissance theatre is English drama written between the Reformation and the
closure of the theatres in 1642. It may also be called early modern English theatre. It
includes the drama of William Shakespeare along with many other famous dramatists.

Terminology
English Renaissance theatre is often called Elizabethan theatre. However, in a strictly
accurate sense, the term 'Elizabethan theatre' covers only the plays written and performed
publicly in England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (that is, 1558 - 1603). As such
'Elizabethan theatre' is distinguished from Jacobean theatre (associated with the reign of King
James I, 1603-1625), and Caroline theatre (associated with King Charles I, 1625 until the
closure of the theatres in 1642).
In practice 'Elizabethan theatre' is often used as a more general term for all English drama
from the Reformation to the closure of the theatre in 1642, thus including both Jacobean and
Caroline drama. As such it is synonymous with 'English Renaissance drama' or 'early modern
English drama'.
English Renaissance theatre derived from several sources. A crucial source was the mystery
plays that were a part of religious festivals in England and other parts of Europe during the
Middle Ages. The mystery plays were complex retellings of legends based on biblical themes,
originally performed in churches but later becoming more linked to the secular celebrations
that grew up around religious festivals. Other sources include the morality plays that evolved
out of the mysteries, the "University drama" that attempted to recreate Greek tragedy. Later, in
the 17th century, the Commedia dell'arte and the elaborate masques frequently presented at
court came to play roles in the shaping of public theater.
Temporary companies of players attached to households of leading noblemen and performing
seasonally in various locations existed before the reign of Elizabeth I. These became the
foundation for the professional players that performed on the Elizabethan stage. The tours of
these players gradually replaced the performances of the mystery and morality plays by local
players, and a 1572 law eliminated the remaining companies lacking formal patronage by
labelling them as 'vagabonds'. At court as well, the performance of masques by courtiers and
other amateurs, apparently common in the early years of Elizabeth, was replaced by the
professional companies with noble patrons, who grew in number and quality during her reign.
The London authorities (known as the Corporation of London) were generally hostile to
public performances, but its hostility was overmatched by the Queen's taste for plays and the
Privy Council's support. Theatres sprang up in suburbs, especially in Southwark, accessible
across the Thames to city dwellers, but not controlled by the London corporation. The
companies maintained the pretence that their public performances were mere rehearsals for

the frequent performances before the Queen, but while the latter did grant prestige, the former
were the real source of the income professional players required.
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A 1596 sketch of a performance in progress on the thrust stage of The Swan, a typical circular
Elizabethan open-roof playhouse.
The stage on which English Renaissance plays were performed was essentially a platform
surrounded on three sides by the audience, only the rear being open for entrances, exits, and
seating for musicians to accompany the frequent songs. The first purpose-built theatre for
plays in England since Roman times was The Theatre, built in Shoreditch by James Burbage
in 1576, and was rapidly followed by the nearby Curtain Theatre. By 1600, there were several
theatres, each with an upper level which could be used as a balcony, as in Romeo and Juliet,
or as a position for an actor to harangue a crowd as in Julius Caesar.
One distinctive feature of the companies was that they included only males. Until the reign of
Charles II, female parts were played by adolescent boys in women's costume.
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Writers
The growing population of London, the growing wealth of its people, and their fondness for
spectacle produced a dramatic literature of remarkable variety, quality, and extent. Although
most of the plays written for the Elizabethan stage have been lost, over 600 remain extant.
The men (no woman, so far as is known, wrote for the stage in this era) who wrote these plays
were primarily self-made men from modest backgrounds. Some of them were educated at
either Oxford or Cambridge, but many were not. Although William Shakespeare was an actor,
the majority do not seem to have been performers, and no major author who came on to the
scene after 1600 is known to have supplemented his income by acting.
Not all of the playwrights fit modern images of poets or intellectuals. Christopher Marlowe
was killed in an apparent tavern brawl, while Ben Jonson killed an actor in a duel. Several
probably were soldiers.
Playwriting was a lucrative occupation for a writer who would produce around 2 plays per
year. Most professional playwrights earned an average of 25 pounds a year, an impressive
amount at the time. They would normally be paid in increments during the writing process,
and if their play was accepted, they would also receive the proceeds from one day's
performance. However, they had no ownership of the plays they wrote. Once a play was sold
to a company, the company owned it, and the playwright had no control over casting,
performance, revision or publication.
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Finale
The rising Puritan movement was hostile to the theatres, which the Puritans considered to be
sinful for several reasons. The most commonly cited reason was that young men dressed up in
female costume to play female roles. Theatres were located in the same parts of the city in
which brothels and other forms of vice proliferated. When the Puritan faction of Parliament
gained control over the city of London at the beginning of the English Civil War, it ordered
the closing of all theatres in 1642 though this was largely because the stage was being used
to promote opposing political views. After the monarchy was restored the theatres re-opened.
The English King and many writers had spent years in France and were influenced by the
flourishing French theatre of Louis XIV, especially in tragedy. However, Restoration
audiences had no enthusiasm for structurally simple, well-shaped comedies such as those of
Molire, but demanded bustling, crowded multi-plot action and fast comedic pace, and the
Elizabethan features of multitude of scenes, multitude of characters, and melange of genres
lived on in Restoration comedy. The Renaissance classics were the mainstay of the
Restoration repertory, although many of the tragedies were adapted to conform to the new
taste.
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Genres
Genres of the period included the history play, which depicted English or European history.
Shakespeares plays about the lives of kings, such as Richard III and Henry V belong to this
category, as does Christopher Marlowe's Edward II.
Tragedy was a popular genre. Marlowe's tragedies were exceptionally popular, such as Dr
Faustus and The Jew of Malta. The audiences particularly liked revenge dramas, such as
Thomas Kyds The Spanish Tragedy. John Websters The Duchess of Malfi offers a parade of
bloody cruelties.
Comedies were common, too. A subgenre developed in this period was the city comedy,
which deal satirically with life in the city after the fashion of Roman New Comedy. Examples
are Thomas Dekker's The Shoemaker's Holiday and Thomas Middleton's A Chaste Maid in
Cheapside