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Shakespeare & Beyond

Shakespeare at a distance: When the playhouses close but performance continues

Watercolor sketch of the Globe stage
Watercolor sketch of the Globe stage
Watercolor sketch of the Globe stage

Watercolor sketch of the Globe stage by Cyril Walter Hodges. Folger Shakespeare Library.

The coronavirus pandemic has forced the closure of theaters around the world, and it might seem at first glance that the theater community has come to a grinding halt. Yet amazingly, thanks to the dedication and ingenuity of its members, the opposite is true. Even as theaters sit empty, performance endures.

This was also the case in Shakespeare’s day. Late in the summer of 1610, the King’s Men were forced to leave London due to an outbreak of plague. As the death toll rose, the playhouses were shuttered, just as they had been on a number of occasions in recent memory. Provincial destinations were now much safer (and much more lucrative) than the city, so Shakespeare’s theater company found another way to keep the show going: they packed up and took a few shows on the road. Even with their usual performance spaces closed, the company’s theatrical activity continued.

One of the stops on this particular tour was a town that Shakespeare, by this time near the end of his career, likely knew well: Oxford. The troupe was hired by the municipal government and probably performed in the town hall. They brought with them two shows: Ben Jonson’s The Alchemist, which begins with a wealthy Englishman being forced to leave London due to plague, and Shakespeare’s Othello.

Comments

Thoroughly enjoyed this piece! FYI My teaching partner and I are teaching/directing a ZOOM production of MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING with a senior citizen drama class. Average age of our cast is 84. This is a our sixth Shakespeare… Nancy Talley

NANCY TALLEY — May 24, 2020