English Renaissance

The Globe- Where Shakespeare's later plays were produced. Burned down in 1613.

The Theatre (1576)- Because the London City Fathers opposed theatre, The Theatre was built north of the city boundaries. Owned by Richard Burbage's father. The Lord Chamberlain's Men performed here.

Lord Chamberlain’s Men- London’s leading troupe that Shakespeare was a part of (acted in and wrote most of the plays), latter known as King’s men. It was formed under the protection of the Henry Carey the lord chamberlain when the theatres reopened after the plague.

The University Wits- University graduates and professional dramatists who wrote plays based on Roman models but incorporating some medieval elements.

John Fletcher- a playwright that collaborated with Francis Beaumont wrote plays with tragedy qualities but with a happy ending. Worked with Shakespeare to write Two Noble Kinsmen and Henry VIII. After Shakespeare’s retirement he became the chief dramatist for the King’s Men.

Robert Green-a university wit and wrote based on Roman models. One of the playwrights that paved the way for Shakespeare and his contemporaries.

Christopher Marlowe- most famous university wit, set the standard for dramatic structure and contributed a gallery of interesting characters to English theatre. Focused on dramatic poetry and good versus evil which he used in Doctor Faustus. Wrote for production not publication.

Doctor Faustus- explores the tragedy of the damnation of a human soul. Written by Marlowe.

Thomas Kyd- wrote the Spanish Tragedy and a university wit

The Spanish Tragedy- an important forerunner of later plays in more ways than one. Skillfully incorporated a number of devices that had come to the forefront during the sixteenth century such as episodic structure, ghosts, soliloquies and the theme of revenge.

Richard Burbage-son of James, the great actor in Shakespeare’s plays

Ben Jonson- adept at comedy, one of the 1st writers in England to champion the neoclassical principals. Developed a comedy of humors. Also was a court poet.

Volpone-comedy where Volpone dupes old men out of their riches by pretending that he is at death’s door

Inigo Jones-court architect and designer for James and Charles and brought Italian innovations in scene design to England. He introduced methods of staging that were to become standard after the Restoration. Influenced by the work of Giuilo Parigi.

James Burbage-father of Richard and operated the outdoor playhouse called the Red Lion

Francis Beaumont-wrote plays with tragedy qualities but with a happy ending, and collaborated with John Fletcher. A university wit. Got married, this ended the partnership of Beaumont and Fletcher.

Philaster- Written by Beaumont (and Fletcher) tragicomedy (serious themes with a happy ending)

Heavens: also called shadows. In the English Renaissance, a roof protecting the stage of a public theatre, often painted on the underside to represent the heavens literally.

The Second Blackfriars: In 1608 the second Blackfriars was leased by the King's Men through a syndicate consisting of the Burbage brothers, Shakespeare, John Heminge and Henry Condell (the two actors who produced the First Folio). William Sly and Thomas Evans. Athough, like the earlier Blackfriars theatre, it was technically within the city, the area was a "liberty," not under the jurisdiction of the puritanical city authorities

Iambic Pentameter: a verse that has five beats to a line with two syllables to each beat and the accent on the second beat - a technique used frequently by Marlowe and Shakespeare. pg 182

Spoken Decor: one of the ways used to suggest a rapid scene change - characters in the plays would describe the settings, indicating that they were in a castle, a forest, or a bedroom - this is a practical reason for Shakespeare's lengthy poetic descriptions of locales in his plays.

The master of revels: auditioned acting troupes, selected the plays they would perform, and controlled the scenery and costumes to be used in each production. During the reign of James I, the Master of Revels reached the apex of his power and had complete authority over both the production and the publication of plays.

Italian Renaissance

Proscenium arch- a.k.a. picture frame, fourth wall, or conventional stage. Still among the best-known types of theater space. Audience sees action through arch, which frames the stage picture. Hides stage mechanisms.

Perspective- Painted backdrops that create the illusion of 3 dimensional depth. Used as early as 1508 for a court performance of Ariosto's "La Cassaria."

Humanism- Focuses on people rather than gods. Study and imitation of of Greeks and Romans. Focused on describing humanity and human powers.

Arlecchino- or Harlequin. Most popular of comic servants. Often wore a patchwork jacket.

Pantalone- a foolish pedant who was always involved in his neighbor's affairs.

Nicoli Machiavelli- Italian author, statesman, and political philosopher. Argued in his book The Prince (1513) that to protect their subjects, rulers must do whatever is necessary and practical- even if it borders on the unethical. Also wrote La Mandragola.

Architettura (1545)- Written by Sebastiano Serlio detailing many of the early methods for creating perspective settings.

La Mandragola- One of the few Italian Renaissance plays still in production today. By Nicoli Machiavelli. It is very reminiscent of Roman New Comedy and reflects the influence on the classical era on the Renaissance.

Capitano: A cowardly braggart soldier, a popular comedia dell arte stock character.

Slapstick: type of comedy or comic business that relies on ridiculous often violent physical activity for its humor.

Pastoral: Idealized dramatization of rural life, often including mythological creatures, popular during the Italian renaissance. They imitated t he greek sayter plays and often dealt with romantic situations. They were not lewd and sexual. They delat with serious actions but they always ended happy

Opera-usually studied as a music form because it is completely sung and dramatic action, mood, and characters are created through song and music. In opera the composer is number 1. It is the only theatrical form from the Italian renaissance to survive.

Dottore- the cowardly, braggart soldier

Zanni- servant, sometimes sly or sometimes foolish

Inamorato- The male lover sometimes wear masks

I Gelosi-name of a commedia company, it means the Zealous

Teatro Farnese- the theatre built by Gaovian Battista Aleotti ,proscenium arch

Raked- stages sloped upwards away from the audience. This is known as a "rake" or "raked stage" and improves the view for the audience. Also rake can mean : To position scenery at a slant or angle other than parallel or perpendicular to the curtain line.

Giacomo Torelli (1608-1678) was the most important set designer of the middle of the seventeenth century. Born in 1608 in the town of Fano, the year of Giulio Parigi’s work on Il Giudizio di Paride in Florence, Torelli was of noble birth. His work in stage design was extensively engraved and hence survives as the most complete record of mid-to-late seventeenth century set design.

Sebastiano Serlio (September 6, 1475 – c. 1554) was an Italian Mannerist architect, who was part of the Italian team building the Palace of Fontainebleau. Serlio helped canonize the classical orders of architecture in his influential treatise.

Lodovico Castelvetro (c.1505-1571) was an important figure in the development of neo-classicism, especially in drama. It was his reading of Aristotle that led to a widespread adoption of a tight version of the Three Unities, as a dramatic standard.His supposed involvement in translation of Protestant texts caused him trouble with the Church. He was labelled a heretic in 1557, and lived in exile from his native Italy (he was born near Modena)

Pit- Floor of the house in a traditional procenium-arch theatre. The pit was originally a standing area; later backless benches were added.

Commedia Dell'arte- Form of comic theatre, originating in Italy in the 16th century, in which dialogue was improvised around a loose scenario involving a set of stock characters, each with a distinctive costume and traditional name.

Verisimilitude- One of the most imporant ideals of the neoclassicists. It means: all drama was to be "true to life."

Decorum- All dramatic characters should behave in ways based on their age, profession, sex, rank, and the like.

Intermezzi-Entertainments performed between the acts of opera and full-length plays.

Lazzi-Comic pieces of business repeatedlly used by commedia dell' arte characters.