Friday, May 27, 2011

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was an English playwright and poet who lived in the late 1500s and early 1600s (around 400 years ago). His plays are now preformed all over the world in hundreds of languages, and he is known as one of the greatest writers of all time.  The reason that his work is so popular is that William Shakespear e wrote about human nature and how they behave.  That is why although his words may be hard to understand his word are as relevant now as they were four centuries ago.

From 1599 onwards William Shakespeare’s plays were usually preformed in the globe, a huge open air circular theater in Southwark in London.  The theater could hold 3000 people, and there were two performances a day. Along with other members of his theater company the Chamberlin’s men William Shakespeare owned a share in the globe and made a lot of money from it.


The Chamberlain’s men originally used a theater called The Theatre in north London. but they fell out with the land lord and in 1599. The theatre was dismantled and its timers were moved and used to build the globe.  In 1613 a spark .from cannon fired at a performance of Henry VIII set fire to a thatched roof and the globe burned down. (No one was badly hurt.) It was re-built with a tiled roof and stood until 1644, when the puritans tore it down in the Civil War.

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