The Globe, Popular for Centuries
Who knows that William Shakespeare caught his own magnificent theater on fire, during one of his cannon-blasting plays? He performed many plays in his theater over the years before it burned in 1613. Rebuilt in 1614, theater shows continued to appear as a popular form of entertainment. Today, Shakespeare's dangerous cannon and firework effects would alarm modern firefighters. A surprising twenty sides encompassed his alluring building, which stretched three times as wide as its height. People of London flocked to his Globe Theater, fascinated with its theater history, backstage effects, and captivating players.
In May of 1599, history reveals the building of the Globe, one of the finest theaters whose name always associates with William Shakespeare. Fashioning the Globe from the wood and timbers of a smaller, older theater, Shakespeare would perform here for many years. Built near the Thames River, it neighbored the Rose and the Swan theaters. A sign on the Globe revealed a picture of Hercules holding the world on his shoulders. This sign seemed to claim that there is nothing in this whole world you cannot see in this theater. It held over 2,000 people. Spectators paid one penny for entry, one more penny to sit in the gallery, and one additional penny to have a special seat with a cushion.
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In this dressing room, the players stored costumes and props. Expensive costumes and successful playbooks waited securely in a locked area away from a thief's grasp. Steps lead up over the stage and into a room which stored lowering gear. Lowering gear descended a player over the stage to cause an illusion. Thunder created a scary sound backstage by rolling a cannon ball onto a sheet of metal or by sounding a drum. By blowing into a pipe over a pot of water, spectators could hear a bird sound. The Globe Theater boomed with the busyness of backstage players in the tiring