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Appendix 3C The Shakespearean Audience The late 1500s/early 1600s were known as the English Renaissance. Queen Elizabeth I was the monarch and London, England was a centre of culture and sophistication. People from the world over congregated to be a part of the rich cultural mosaic. The middle and upper classes enjoyed the music, art, literature, and theatre that flourished in this metropolis. The common folk also yearned for entertainment. Consequently, talented artists travelled to London to ply their trades and to showcase their talents. Theatres were a popular form of entertainment. Most Elizabethan theatres had a seating capacity of between one and two thousand people. They were frequently outdoors and had no roofs. In a week, there were often as many as 10 000 people in attendance. Nevertheless, theatrical companies were challenged by the social constraints of the Elizabethan era. During Shakespeare’s time, actors were held in low esteem by highbrow society. Travelling in troupes, they were often considered to be little more than vagabonds and wastrels; however, Queen Elizabeth’s support helped actors raise their status amongst the middle and upper classes. For all of London’s cultural richness and diversity, it was a stink hole of public health and hygiene. Rotting garbage and raw sewage littered the streets. The city was a breeding ground for rats, which spread disease. Outbreaks of fatal diseases like the bubonic plague constantly devastated the population of London. Theatres and other public places were regularly ordered to close in attempts to limit the spread of disease. In addition to hygienic concerns, civic and religious authorities had other fears. They worried about the spread of immorality and subversive ideas that might challenge the political and religious leadership. As a result, most theatres were forced to locate on the outskirts of town in areas called “Liberties,” often in the slums. They were ripe breeding grounds for thieves, pickpockets, and other criminals. Employers had additional concerns for their workers. The lure of the Liberties frequently prompted workers to leave their jobs in the afternoon to partake in the entertainments. The seating arrangements were socially stratified. There were three galleries to seat the different classes of people. The nobility sat apart from the rest of the theatregoers, as they wanted to limit the spread of disease from the masses. They constituted a minor portion of the total audience. The lower classes paid a penny to stand on the ground floor. Crowded together, the “groundlings” assembled for several hours before and during a performance, to drink beer, wine, and other spirits; to eat; to gamble; and to partake in other activities that might placate them and occupy their time. They were often referred to as the “penny stinkards” for their stench of ale, bad breath, and body odour and for the lewd comments that they shouted out during the production. The actors were challenged by the outbursts of the cheap seats and by having to satisfy the wide range of viewing tastes of the audience. Theatres had to compete with other sources of entertainment, including the inhumane practice of bear baiting and bull-baiting. Audiences assembled to view a spectacle of blood and gore in which a large animal was chained while it vainly attempted to ward off the vicious attacks of other animals. Theatre productions had to take into account this blood lust. The killing of characters on stage had to be accompanied by the gushing of animal blood from a bag concealed under the character’s costume. Crowds loved and came to expect this bloody show of violence. Shakespeare did not disappoint them in this regard and packed his plays with sword fights, duels, and battle scenes. Shakespeare’s plays had mass appeal. While some of the audience came to the theatre to hear the foul language and to view the gore, other members of the audience came to the theatre to witness Shakespeare’s wit, poetic turn of phrase and humour. The Bard was loved and revered most by the illiterate common folk, who toiled for the wealthy and privileged. These people’s lives were filled with struggle and Shakespeare appealed to their sensibilities. Unit 3 – Page 13 • Bridge to English – Open
Appendix 3D Shakespeare’s Time Assignment You will work in triads to research one topic on Shakespeare’s time and present your work to the class. Topics include: food; living conditions; sports; education; clothing/fashions; health/medicine; family life; beliefs/superstitions; the class system; the feudal system; and acting customs. If you are interested in another aspect of the time of Shakespeare, be sure to get approval from your teacher. You will be provided with class time to research your topic in the library, but will also have to complete some research outside of class time. Use at least one book, one Internet site, and one encyclopedia. From your research, create a poster that visually represents your topic. The poster must include: • your title; • ten facts on your selected topic; • visuals (diagrams, illustrations, photographs, etc.) that support the topic; • a bibliography (references cited sheet) affixed to the back of the poster. You will explain your poster to the class in a ten-minute presentation. Each person in the group must present. You may use cue cards during the presentation, but must not read directly from them. Students are expected to take notes during all presentations; the notes will be collected and assessed for use of abbreviations, point-form, succinct statement of main idea, and key vocabulary/terminology. Your oral group presentation of the media work is due on: ___________________________. Make every effort to submit work on time; meeting deadlines is an important skill necessary for university, college, and the world of work. If you cannot submit work when it is due, it is your responsibility to speak to the teacher well in advance of the due date to negotiate a date when the work will be submitted. Unit 3 – Page 14 • Bridge to English – Open
Page 1 and 2:
Course Profiles Public District Sch
Page 3 and 4:
Course Overview Bridge to English,
Page 5 and 6: Through a study of poetry, short st
Page 7 and 8: Activity 3 Research - Choosing a Fu
Page 9 and 10: Activity 3 Thinking About the World
Page 11 and 12: Unit 4: Love in an Imperfect World
Page 13 and 14: Activity 2 Bull’s Eye: Selling to
Page 15 and 16: The URLs for the websites were veri
Page 17 and 18: Reading Overall Expectations EREV.0
Page 19 and 20: Social and Cultural Competence Over
Page 21 and 22: Writing EWRV.01 - write in a variet
Page 23 and 24: 3. Through a variety of introductor
Page 25 and 26: Resources Acker, D. and D. Hodgkins
Page 27 and 28: • What do you think the individua
Page 29 and 30: 9. Review/teach plot graph and have
Page 31 and 32: Writing EWRV.01 - write in a variet
Page 33 and 34: Assessment & Evaluation of Student
Page 35 and 36: Prior Knowledge & Skills • knowle
Page 37 and 38: Appendix 1B Conference Report for I
Page 39 and 40: Appendix 1D Adjectives for Self-Ana
Page 41 and 42: Appendix 1F Postsecondary Research
Page 43 and 44: Appendix 1I Evaluation of Oral Pres
Page 45 and 46: • Some of the students will come
Page 47 and 48: Websites http://www.lynchmultimedia
Page 49 and 50: Accommodations • Students read Ap
Page 51 and 52: 8. Students then assemble their pos
Page 53 and 54: Teaching/Learning Strategies 1. Stu
Page 55: Appendix 3B Quiz on Romeo and Julie
Page 59: Appendix 3E Illustration Assignment
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Course Profile - Curriculum Services Canada

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