Archaeology Magazine - November/December 1996 - 153

Digging

the

Rose

and

A new study reassesses Elizabethan
By Ricardo

Globe
playhouses .

J. Elia

seamless synthesis of archaeology,
history, literature, architecture, and
art history. Wilson ably controls the
evidence from all of these fields and
seems as comfortable describing sixteenth-century tomb sculpture as she
is reporting the results of urban salvage excavations.
The book is handsomely illustrated and well written and gives the
reader a clear picture of the social
and material context of ShakeIt is surprising how little we know
speare's plays. There are chapters on
about the form and appearance of
Shakespeare's life and society, Elizabethan theater, the theatricality of
the outdoor theater in the time of
the Elizabethan era, outdoor playShakespeare. None of the nine or so
theaters of Elizabethan London surhouses, costume, indoor theaters, and
a summary of the Rose and Globe
vives, and it was only in 1989 that
excavations.
archaeological traces of two of them,
the Rose and the Globe, were unShakespeare grew up in a world
with a long tradition of theatricality.
covered. As Jean Wilson notes in The
, most people's
Religious and civic pageants included
of Shakespeare
Archaeology
the performance of mystery cycles,
impression of what a Shakespearean
theater looked like probably derives
morality plays, and royal processions,
where piety, virtue, and civil order
from the playhouse re-created for Sir
were dramatized for public edificaLaurence Olivier's 1944 film Henry
tion. Popular forms of dramatic enV, which emphasized medieval elements and minimized influence from
tertainment, both outdoor and inclassical Renaissance style. Equally
door, were provided by troubadours,
uncertain is the appearance of the
musicians, jugglers, acrobats, and
fools. There were also bull- and
Shakespearean stage and its "tiring
house," the facade at the rear (origibear-baitings, cock-fights, fireworks,
and water pageants.
as
a
that
served
room)
nally dressing
a backdrop to the action. In his foreActing had evolved from amateur
avocation to full-time profession. Perword, Colin Renfrew points out that
manent theaters meant permanent
we know less about some aspects of
Elizabethan theaters than we do
audiences, and popular actors could
attain the Elizabethan equivalent of
about those of ancient Rome.
star status. Shakespeare was a leadWith the discoveries of the Rose
and the Globe, a new assessment of
ing actor and playwright of Lord
Chamberlain's Men, a troupe under
the physical context and material
aristocratic patronage; later, the
culture of Shakespearean theater can
be made. The Archaeology
of Shakespeare company received royal sponsorship
and became the King's Men. In the
in
task. This
succeeds
this
admirably
1590s Shakespeare and his company
marvellous book is an example of
historical archaeology at its best- a
performed in a playhouse called sim-

The Archaeology
of Shakespeare: The Material Legacy of
Theatre. By Jean
Shakespeare's
Wilson. 211 pages. Stroud, U.K.:
Alan Sutton Publishing, Ltd., 1995.
Available
ISBN 0-7509-0926-9.
from Books International, P.O. Box
605, Herndon, VA 20172-0605, tel.
703-661-1586. $35.95.

Archaeology

Archaeology Magazine - November/December 1996

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