The Human Stage: English Theatre Design, 1567–1640

by John Orrell

• ISBN13: 9780521109451
• ISBN10: 0521109450
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-06-18
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

This book describes the theatres of the time of Shakespeare and Ben Jonson in the light of the contemporary architectural thought and building design. John Orrell incorporates recent discoveries about the structure of theatres such as the Red Lion playhouse (1567), the Christ Church Theatre, Oxford (1605) and the Paved Court Theatre, Somerset House (1632) in a re-examination of old assumptions about their design and origins. Orrell shows that the first public theatres, exemplified by the Globe on the Bankside, were fully realised architectural ideas, not ad hoc improvisations. Indoor playhouses, such as the Blackfriars and the Cockpit, Drury Lane, show clear signs of having been influenced by the theatre scheme of Sebastiano Serlio, a scheme which is human in scale, methodical in development and Roman in plan. Serlio's scheme is identified as a common link between the great public theatres of Shakespeare's time, the major private theatres and the Court masques designed by Inigo Jones. The story of the early stages is thus more coherent and more interesting than has been supposed. The book is extensively illustrated with contemporary views of London, theatre plans and scene designs.

Table of Contents

Preface

Acknowledgements

Prologue

Festive Theatres

Goodly theatres

The festive tradition

Goodly devices: emblematic design

The stage cover

John Norden's pictures of the theatres

This majestical roof

The Elizabethan Banqueting House, Whitehall

Serlian Theatres

The Christ Church theatre

Serlio's theatre plan

This goodly frame: the public theatres

The Court theatres

The private theatres

Serlian Scenes

Serlio's measurable scene designs

Inigo Jones's scene designs

Appendix: Serlio's virtual field of vision

Notes

Index

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