The Elizabethan Age (1558 - 1603) - Popular Entertainment Flashcards
(33 cards)
What was bull baiting?
Used dogs as bait
Rope tied around base of horns to stake
Dogs were set free one by one to fight the bull
Cheap, gambling, violence
What was bear baiting?
Used angry dogs as bait
Bear chained to wooden stake
Bet on which dog would survive longest
Cheap, gambling violence
What was cock fighting?
Between a single pair of birds
Sometimes as many as twenty would fight until one was left
In a cockfighting pit
Cheap, gambling, violence
What entertainment did the rich participate in?
Hawking
Hunting
Dancing
Music
Ball games
What entertainment did the poor participate in?
Football, tennis, lawn bowls
Who enjoyed music and singing?
Form of home entertainment as many people could play a musical instrument e.g viol, lute or virginals
Who enjoyed hawking?
A trained hawk would kill selected prey and then hawking return. Bells would be attached to the bird to keep track of it. Rich.
Who enjoyed hunting?
Hunt picnics and deer hunting were enjoyed by wealthy nobles.
Who enjoyed dancing?
The upper classes employed musicians to play foreign tunes. The Queen loved dancing. The poor enjoyed country dances.
Who enjoyed lawn bowls?
Fashionable for all classes. Earlier versions include skittles and kayles.
Who enjoyed tennis?
The lower classes enjoyed hitting a small ball to and fro either with the palm of their hand or a racquet.
Who enjoyed football?
Very rough
No proper rules
No pitch
No goals
No set number of players
Fights often broke out
Enjoyed by the poor
Who enjoyed archery?
Men over 24 in the upper classes were expected to practise archery on a Sunday after Church using a longbow or crossbow.
What was different about rich sports?
Required money and time
A trainer or tutor
Specialised equipment
What were bands of rolling players?
Wandering bans or players toured the country to perform for townsfolk, tradesmen, women and children.
Perform in the courtyard of an inn or a market square where they could set up a portable stage to be seen front and side.
The wealthier landowners would have private showings in their homes.
Common theme was Robin Hood where poor triumphed over rich.
Theatre companies performed, also performing for the Queen at Court. Permanent theatres were constructed.
Why were bands of strolling players banned?
Encouraged people to rebel
The large gatherings of crowds helped to spread disease
In 1572 a law passed banning strolling players unless they had been granted a licence by the Lord Chamberlain.
What happened to the number of theatres during Elizabeth’s reign?
No theatres -> 7 by 1600
Theatres all over the country by 1603
Golden Age of theatre
What was theatre like?
Each theatre could hold a large audience
Theatres were round or octagon shaped
The rear part of the stage had a roof to protect the performers
The back panels of the stage were painted but there was no scenery
A canopy above the stage symbolised God
The cheapest tickets in the pit could be afforded by the poor
Who enjoyed the theatre?
Rich, poor, nobles, all classes
Sat according to class with the cheapest seats exposed for the poor and higher seats with cushions for the rich
Queen Elizabeth I
Why was theatre popular?
Gripping storylines with colourful characters
Good vs evil
Social event for rich
Cheap
Opportunity to dress up and be noticed
The Queen was a patron
Event in social calendar
Nobles could show off wealth, status and power
Opportunity to gossip and see who is there
Playwrights improved
Hope and escapism for poor
What were theatre companies?
Had the financial support and patronage of wealthy noblemen or the Queen
Developed from bands of strolling players
Given licenses to perform by the Lord Chamberlain
Could perform for the Queen and her Court
Sponsored by Queen, nobles and wealthy gentry
Banned religious and political themes
Plays only performed a few times
E.g The Queen’s men est 1583
What was the design of theatres?
Octagonal or round
Plain walls and thatched roof
Roof supported by pillars over rear stage
Colourful but no scenery
Doors and trapdoors for actors to enter through
During daylight
Signalled by cannon or flag
Time and money could be spent on quality of plays not travelling
What was the Globe?
No full roof, circular
2,000 capacity
3 tiers
Other notable theatres include The Rose, The Swan and The Theatre (1st to open)
What is the timeline of theatres?
1572 - only nobles could be patrons
1574 - all theatre companies required a license
Controlled themes of plays
