The Globe Theatre
The Globe Theatre was one of the most popular theatres in London and was where most of Shakespeare's plays were first performed. It was very different from most theatres today. It was open-air and had eight sides. It was three stories high and could hold approximately 3,000 people. Most of the audience would stand in the pit in front of the stage and stay on their feet for the whole performance, as there were no seats. The more wealthy theatregoers would sit on hard wooden seats around the edge of the theatre. The 'groundlings' that would stand to watch the plays only paid a penny to get in to the theatre. Being poor, they wouldn't have been able to wash very often. On a hot day, this part of the audience didn't smell very nice and they were given the nickname 'the penny stinkers'.
The Globe continued to put on plays until 1642 when the Puritans closed it down along with all the other theatres in London. The Puritans were a religious group who thought that enjoying yourself was sinful. They made church services very plain and banned theatres and other forms of entertainment.
Rebuilt in 1993 near the original site of theatre, The Globe now stages plays much as it did during Shakespeare's life.
