Cranford Review 2020

# ENGLISH
at ‘The Globe’
SHAKESPEARE’S
GLOBE
Shakespeare is an important part of our
literary and cultural heritage but studying
the plays in the classroom is no replacement
for seeing the words brought to life on the stage.
So, after studying the text of Macbeth and writing
numerous essays on the language and structure of
the play, the English Department were delighted to
be able to take the whole of year 11 to see the play
being performed at The Globe Theatre. The Globe
is a reconstruction of the original Elizabethan
playhouse for which Shakespeare wrote his plays
and is a cultural and historic landmark on the bank
of the Thames. The production was a collaboration
between the Playing Shakespeare Company and
Deutsche Bank and the performances are created
especially for young people with the aim of
inspiring them with live theatre and simultaneously
deepening their understanding of the play. It was a
truly interactive experience that incorporated jump
scares, knock-knock jokes, canons of confetti,
singing, dancing and audience participation with
both props and actors; students got a thrilling
taste of theatre as Elizabethan audiences must
have once experienced it. In just 90 minutes,
the play was transformed from words on a page
read in a classroom to a thrilling and emotional
experience as we watched the rise and fall of one
of Shakespeare’s most tragic of heroes. A great day
for students and teachers alike, it was a wonderful
celebration of all of the year 11 students’ hard
work and dedication to English and a day that will
live in our memories for a long time.
Fran Green (Head of English Department)
Magnificent Macbeth
On
March 6th 2020, we journeyed from
Cranford to London’s South Bank to
witness the tragedy of Macbeth being performed
in Shakespeare’s Globe in Southwark on
London’s southern bank. We witnessed a play
that was written four centuries ago yet the tale of
ambition, revenge and murder did not seem out
of place in modern day Britain and by the end
we could see why this theatre was still one of the
most popular attractions in London in 2020.
The Globe is a famous performing arts venue
which is located on the bank of the River Thames
in London where many of Shakespeare’s plays are
performed. It is meant to be a reconstruction of the
original Globe Theatre which was built in 1599
but sadly destroyed by fire in 1613. The Globe
has a circular structure- which is three stories
high- that was enclosing a central arena open to
the bright March sapphire skies of London. The
remarkable Elizabethan playhouse contains the
audience either sitting or standing on three sides
of the stage. As soon as you enter the historic
building, you immediately feel a sensational
energy and buzz as you wait with the rest of the
audience for the characters to take to the stage
and play their part. Everyone in the crowd was
very upbeat and the intense atmosphere made
the arena feel like a football derby. When the
characters were going to step out, you just knew
you were going to have the thrill of your life.
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