Inn-Yard Theater

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The courtyard of the Bell Savage Inn from 1420, rebuilt after a fire in 1666. The picture shows the state in the 19th century, shortly before the house was demolished.

In the history of the Elizabethan theater , an inn-yard theater or inn-theater was an inn ( inn ) with an inner courtyard in which plays could be performed. In German this would correspond to the Wirtshaustheater . The balcony galleries surrounding the inner courtyard were ideal for accommodating larger audiences with a good view of the action on the stage.

Beginnings

The Elizabethan Age is known for the fact that England's first permanent theaters after Roman times were built here. Homes like The Theater of James Burbage (1576), the Curtain (1577), the Rose Theater (1587), The Swan Theater (1595) and the famous Globe Theater William Shakespeare (1599) made it possible that playwrights such as Christopher Marlowe , William Shakespeare, Ben Jonson and many others were able to shape the literary theater system in England.

Before this development began, plays had to be staged in pre-existing locations, such as outdoor spaces, public assembly halls and private rooms of nobles; some even took place in the royal palace itself. Most of the time, however, the courtyards of the already well-frequented pubs and inns were popular performance venues. The new theater buildings erected afterwards are said to have been architecturally based on these conditions with the surrounding balconies, the open space in the middle and the stage offset to the side. It is not certain whether some inn yards were also set up as permanent theaters. When the first real theaters were built, these venues were not abandoned. On the contrary, the Inn-Yard Theaters continued to be used and, along with the large theaters, formed an important aspect of Elizabethan drama.

Climax

The available evidence suggests that six London inns in particular were important places for the theater in the second half of the 16th century. The following are the places that have been removed today and their first appearance as a theater:

John Florio's English-Italian Dictionary First Fruits of 1578 mentions pieces listed at the Bull Inn. On November 5, 1589, the Lord Mayor of London ordered that the theater company Lord Strange's Men was banned from performing in the city because of their participation in the Marprelate controversy . However, the same afternoon, this opposed this instruction with an appearance at the Cross Keys Inn. At that time there were six pubs and taverns that bore the name Boar's Head, which made researchers difficult. Charles Jasper Sisson (1885–1966), professor of literature at the University of London , however, shed light on the darkness with his 1972 study The Boar's Head Theater -; An Inn Yard Theater of the Elizabethan Age . John Brayne , who already ran the Red Lion Theater and Burbages The Theater in Shoreditch , also wanted to convert his leased house in Whitechapel into an inn with permanent theater operations ( George Inn ) in 1580 ; the plans never came to fruition due to lack of money, a dispute with his business partner and his death in 1586.

The Queen Elizabeth's Men were deliberately put together from three other companies and young other actors (today they would say: cast ) and established as the leading theater company in the London scene from 1583. In addition to court appearances, it also played in inn-yard theaters such as the Bell Inn and the Bel Savage Inn.

The Lord Chamberlain's Men used the Cross Keys Inn as their winter venue for a while.

In his famous anti-theater diatribe Histriomastix from 1632, the Puritan polemicist William Prynne tells of an urban legend which has a necromancy as its content. During a performance of Marlowe's tragic story by Doctor Faustus on the stage of the Bel Savage Inn , the devil is said to have actually been conjured up; an event that would have been so terrible that several viewers are said to have "lost their minds".

Crisis 1596

The Lord Mayor and the City Council of London have always been hostile to actors and theater productions and viewed them as breeding grounds for crime and civil unrest. They made repeated attempts to suppress all theatrical activities within their jurisdiction. The chief officials of the English court , the Lord Chamberlain of the Household , who were responsible for the entertainment at court and who put together permanent theater ensembles for this purpose, were a particular annoyance . These include Thomas Radclyffe, 3rd Earl of Sussex (in service from 1572 to 1585) and Henry Carey, 1, Baron Hunsdon (from 1585 to 1596), who regularly had their Sussex's Men and Lord Chamberlain's Men perform to the displeasure of the city tour .

This situation was reversed in 1596 when Lord Hunsdon died and William Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham became Lord Chamberlain. Cobham was a friend of the City of London and an opponent of drama; under his influence, the Privy Council agreed to a ban on theatrical acting within the City of London . For this purpose, all existing theaters within the city ​​wall were demolished (theater owners such as Burbage and Philip Henslowe wisely chose the location of their theaters outside). A later published list from 1628 lists some of the inns closed in 1596; however, the list is inadequate and also ambiguous. However, it appears that at least the Bull, Bell, Cross Keys and Bel Savage Inn fell victim to the ban and were demolished.

recreation

The George Inn , a preserved 16th century London inn in Southwark , which also hosted theater performances

Fortunately for the Elizabethan theater and also for English literature, Lord Cobham died the following year and George Carey, 2nd Baron Hunsdon, took over the office of Lord Chamberlain. This returned to the politics of his father and supported, protected and promoted the English theater again.

The remaining tavern theaters continued to show performances. The Boar's Head Inn was renovated in 1598 and 1599 and the controversial theater entrepreneur Francis Langley was involved there for a period. In 1602, the Worcester's Men received official permission to become the third London-based theater company. Their first appearance was at the Boar's Head Inn. In 1604 an inn in the London borough of Clerkenwell was converted into the Red Bull Theater , which was to be an important location for the theater in the coming decades and was not abandoned until 1660.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ William J. Lawrence: Pre-Restoration Stage Studies , Harvard University Press Cambridge, Massachusetts 1927; New edition by Benjamin Blom, New York 1967; Pages 3-42.
  2. ^ FE Halliday , A Shakespeare Companion 1564-1964, Penguin, Baltimore 1964; P. 243.
  3. ^ EK Chambers , The Elizabethan Stage, 4 volumes, Clarendon Press, Oxford 1923; Volume 2, pages 379-83 and 443-5.
  4. ^ Halliday, p. 76.
  5. ↑ Lawrence Manley, Sally-Beth MacLean: Lord Strange's Men and Their Plays in Google Book Search
  6. ^ Charles Jasper Sisson: The Boar's Head Theater -; An Inn Yard Theater of the Elizabethan Age, Stanley Wells, eds., Routledge & Kegan Paul, London 1972.
  7. ^ Herbert Berry: The Boar's Head Playhouse, Washington DC, Folger Books / Folger Shakespeare Library, 1986.
  8. ^ Sisson, pages 6, 11-19 ff.
  9. ^ Halliday, p. 123.
  10. ↑ Chambers, Volume 3, pages 423-4.
  11. ^ Halliday, p. 404.