Sunday, November 9, 2008
"Shakespeare in the Classroom"
Please comment on the video "Shakespeare in the Classroom" we have just watched. What new information about Shakespeare's time did you learn from the video that you found interesting specifically? Please comment and put your name on your comment before our class meets on Wednesday, Nov. 12th, so that you can get credit for doing so.
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31 comments:
I was amazed to find out in the video that there are only 5 known facts about Shakespeare because I feel like I know everything about him from his writings. His plays were really like an escape from reality for both the rich and the poor, but you could still tell the difference in social class by the color and fabrics of their clothing. I found it funny that the men padded their bellies to make it seem like they had enough money to eat more. I was also surprised to find out that women could not be onstage in the theatre and that the "master of the revels" was the one to enforce this issue. (I thought it was ironic, then, that Mr. Baker chose this as his shareholder name in the Mercy Shakespeare Society.) He could shut down the theatre just for one simple thing. Elizabeth I really was the exception to the bias against women of the times with her extraordinary power and influence. Finally, I was shocked to learn that actors were really like the actors of today, always struggling to get their 'big break' and being fawned upon when they make it into the theatre world.
I learned a multitude of things about the time period of Shakespeare through the video. I was interested to find that Shakespeare was such a famous playwright because he knew people's emotions and how to trigger them. He wrote neither for the rich, nor for the poor. Additionally, everyone was equal in the theater. Even though seating was according to class, people still came to see the same people act the same play. It was also interesting that there was little or no scenery in the shows, but the actors had very flamboyant costumes, and that plays were held in the afternoon because they had to take advantage of the light. I liked that Queen Elizabeth loved the theater, which was part of the reason it was so popular. She loved seeing plays, especially when women dressed as men to get into the shows because she understood how it felt to be a woman in a man's world. I was surprised that London officials hated theater, especially since Queen Elizabeth enjoyed it so much. Officials, however, viewed the theater with low regards because it attracted prostitutes, pickpockets, and diseases, such as the Black Plague and tried to close them for the pettiest reasons. I was amazed that there was such little rehearsal time before the plays, as little as a week. Sometimes, people memorized as many as 100 lines per day. Ned Allen and the Admiral's Men were a popular acting troupe during the time, especially because they were talented at memorizing lines. I thought it was funny that many critics during the time would not go to plays unless there was a gory scene with at least one person who was stabbed. Finally, I learned why Romeo and Juliet was so popular. It mixed a comedy with a tragedy, something that had not been done before. In the beginning of Romeo and Juliet, there is a short synopsis of the play, which gives away the whole story, but actually influences the people to fall in love with Romeo and Juliet and wish desperately for them to not die, even though they know what is coming. Throughout the movie, I learned many important facts that help me understand Shakespeare's time better, and better understand his works.
When watching the video, it was hard to believe that there are only five well-known facts about William Shakespeare. It would be thought that there would be much more known about this very famous playwright who has made such an impact on the English-speaking world. Performances took place in the afternoon, and there were no restrooms or intermissions. Within the audience, the rich and poor didn't necessarily separate themselves, but it was easy to tell a person's rank by the color of their clothing. For example, if one was wearing purple, it was easy to see that that person was wealthy, since purple dye was expensive and difficult to get. Also, if one was wearing silk, satin, or velvet, it was also easy to tell their social rank. People often layered clothing, and men padded their stomachs to make it seem as if they were wealthy enough to be well-fed and eat more than the average person. During this period, the London officials hated the theater, and they were afraid of it as well, thinking that this was a main way the Plague was spread. Because of this, they often were the reason that a theater was closed. Also, the queen liked and often attended plays. During these performances she attended, if she laughed at anything, everyone else in the audience laughed as well. Also, it was forbidden that women were on the stage, so men always played women's parts. Often, it would occur that a women would cross dress just to be able to act. A final thing that was interesting about this time period was the fact that plays had very short rehearsal times, and a play would be shown within a week. Actors often had to memorize over 100 lines in a day.
allie b.
After watching the movie, I was shocked to find out that so little was known about the man who is one of the world’s most famous authors. If we only knew five facts about a modern star, they probably wouldn’t be a star. As the movie continued I was engaged to find that the theatre in his age was not intended at all to be played by women. I found this discriminating and pathetic because their probably were so many great female actresses who never got a chance; however, I enjoyed how these writers had to be that more talented because if they weren’t no actor could play any part as well. The actors also had to be talented because they learned plays and presented them in a week’s time. The actors were stars who were commoners which I found ironic because the social order was so strict. Theatre then seemed to bridge the gap between the poor and rich because they rich gave clothes to the actors for costumes, the queen attended as well as commoners, and gave new ideas to all people. I also liked how the theatre contradicted the social class again because they let anyone of any social class attend these plays, often in poor conditions. It was disgusting to find that the theatres were often a place to catch the plague and because the military was looking for a way to shut down the theatres they jumped at this and many other ways to get the theatres to close. I loved watching scenes from the beautiful works of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. It was so precious how he took a comedy, a love story, and a tragedy and turned it into a priceless work. His writing was poetic and beautiful and a classic for all time.
I discovered many new things about the times of William Shakespeare by watching the movie Shakespeare in the Classroom. The reason why many people are fascinated with Shakespeare’s plays and other works is because through them he was able to tell about real experiences of the time and how real people would feel in certain situations. He had many plays and works he had written which means there was a selection for just about every person could in some way relate to and enjoy. I found it very interesting that we are able to still enjoy Shakespeare’s plays to this day yet we only know five basic facts about his life such as when he and his children were christened, who he betrothed, and when he died. Although these are the only actual facts we know about him, we can learn about this playwright from his various writings. I found out more about the conditions, or beliefs of the people of that time. In London during the late 1500s, there was a lot of violence, and riots were caused for the smallest reasons. It was also a time of romance and art. People would go to plays and all be together and what class they belonged to would not matter. I thought that this was a good change because in most cases of that time, class determined everything and what someone would become in their life. I learned more about the plays themselves that took place in Shakespeare’s time. The theatres were located outside and plays mostly took place in the afternoon because they depended on the sun as their main source of light. Theatres would not spend much money on scenery, but costumes were very important for many things. The color of the costume would determine the class of the character and as would the amount of clothes the character was wearing. I found it humorous that some men would stuff their shirts to make themselves look larger, showing that they had enough money to feed themselves and be glutinous. I also found it interesting that the color purple was illegal for some classes to wear, and was far more expensive than other colors. I also found it odd that women could not be in plays, and if they were the theatre could be shut down. I specifically found this ironic because while women could not be on stage, a woman, Elizabeth I, could be the queen and rule them. I realized that actors back then, and also in current times are always searching for their big break. As the movie continued I also found out that the plague passed on in the theatre because of how close all the people were and how they all came from different places. Going on, I also learned that Shakespeare was one of the first playwrights to mix both a tragedy and a comedy. In Romeo and Juliet it begins as a comedy but soon ends as a tragedy with both Romeo and Juliet dead. Shakespeare’s writing is timeless and his plays will never stop being put on.
I learned many things from the video. One thing in particular that I thought was interesting was that women were not allowed to be in the plays performed at The Globe. I found that it seemed to be illogical and contradictory because one of the most powerful people in the country at the time, Queen Elizabeth I, was a woman and she loved the theater. I also believe that there was no point to this rule because women can act just as well, if not better than, men in plays. There was no harm in putting women in plays and casting a woman in a woman’s part, as opposed to a man in a woman’s part, makes the play more realistic. Therefore, I disagree with that custom of theater society. Another thing that I found interesting was that Shakespeare’s writings deal with some of the same themes that we find in newspaper headlines today. He wrote about love, power, violence and life. I had always assumed that I could never relate to anything Shakespeare wrote when, in actuality, his writings deal with many things that are still happening today. I had always thought that since Shakespeare lived so long ago that he would be dealing with topics that are drastically different than today when they are really not.
I learned many things from the video "Shakespeare in the Classroom". I thought it was interesting that Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet was a different than most other plays, because it combined both comedy and tragedy.It is crazy to think that Romeo and Juliet was the first of its kind to combine both comedy and tragedy because so many books/plays combine so many different styles. It was also interesting that the plays had "stars" just like we have celebrities today. I thought it was amazing that actors would learn up to one hundred lines a day and only rehearse three or four times a day. The plays were also many hours. It must have been an extreme workload to be able to do all of this. It was also amazing how they would be performing one play, but practicing another play during the same week. Today, people practice and rehearse for weeks on end. One thing that I already had some idea about but did not know that it was so extreme was the fact that woman were so much lesser than men. It was surprising to learn that a woman's main job was to married, and often the marriages were arranged, so the family could get more land or property. It is strange because Queen Elizabeth 1, a woman, was the ruler and had the most power. Everyone respected her, even men. The final thing I found interesting was that you could tell someones social class by the colors they wore. I found the fact that it was illegal for certain people under the rank of count/countess to wear purple because it was so expensive.
from this video i learned a lot more about shakespeare as well as the theater in the Elizabethan time period. First, i was surprised to hear that we only know 5 facts about shakespeare, 2 of which are christenings of his children; i didnt even know he had children! The fact that we know so little about himi shard to believe since his playwrites are so well known. I also didnt realize that Shakespeare's works were and still are performed all over the world, rather than just England. Other than shakespeare i learned a lot about the queen and how the upper class dressed to set them apart from the middle class and lower. The different colors and fabrics used for clothing and costumes showed how rich you were. I didnt know that there were colors off limits to those under the rank of count, like the color purple. Finally, i enjoyed hearing about how much the theater relied on the opinions of the Queen (as well as the irony that she was a woman and women werent allowed on the stage). if she hadnt have liked theater it might not have been able to continue to go on, and we wouldnt know shakespeares work, just like we dont know his biography.
By watching the movie, i learned many new facts that i thought were interesting. The movie started off with how we there are only 5 known facts about Shakespeare. I was surprised when hearing this, because it seems like we know a lot more about him then we really do. Through his writings we learn a lot about Shakespeare. Furthermore, there were a lot of diseases in the time of Shakespeare. I, for some reason, thought that the black death really just only affected the people in the lower class. I was surprised to know that it actually hit everyone no matter of their wealth. I did not know that only rich people of the time wore the color purple because it was a very ravishing, and expensive color made out of sea snails. Also, people of wealth wore more layers. I thought it was funny that men sometimes padded their stomach to make it look bigger, as a sign of wealth.
In addition, i was surprised that there was no restrooms and no intermission during the plays that lasted a few hours. I do not know how they managed to stay awake for that long. Also, i was shocked to find out that the actors of the plays were forced to memorize 100s of lines a day, and the show would be put on in within a week! It is amazing that they could memorize their plays so well, in such a short amount of time, and have such a succesfull result! Also, woman of the time period had hardly any education or rights. They were mainly just used for marriages, and it made no difference whether or not love was involved. It is horrible that they did not have hardly any rights, and were forced into arranged marriages. I was amazed to find out that it was forbidden by the law that women were not aloud to appear on stage, and a theatre could be clossed down if they went against this rule. Its crazy that men were then forced to dress up as women to play their parts! It is very ironic that Queen Elizabeth, a woman, had very large power over the people. She was well educated by the time of twelve, had many privellages, and a lot of power. Plays went on only because Elizabeth loved the theatre, and wanted them to be put on for her. I thought it was very disgusting that the queen only bathed 3 or 4 times a year, and that was thought as beeing well bathed. In conclusion, I learned many new facts that i was not aware of before the movie.
Meghan R.
The most interesting thing I learned from the movie about Shakespeare's time was how few rights women had. For example, they were not even allowed to appear onstage, and if they did the consequence could be that the theater would be closed. Women were so desperate to have any rights that they were willing to disguise themselves as men. This was the only way they could pursue their dreams, such as becoming an actress. Considering that women were so inferior in Shakespeare's time, it is ironic that England was ruled by Queen Elizabeth I. Unlike any other woman, she was looked up to by men because she was the most powerful person in this society. Some interesting things I learned about Queen Elizabeth I was that she loved the theater, which is one of the reasons it was not completely shut down by angry employers who wanted their laborers to return to work. Another interesting thing I learned about her was that she never married. As queen, she could have chosen to marry any man. In fact, she often brought up the topic of marraige during important negotiations. However, she quickly took it back as soon as she got what she wanted. I also found the costumes used in Shakespeare's plays to be very interesting. They very accurately portrayed the upper class because they were so colorful and elegant. At that time, people with high social status wore many layers of colorful clothing to show off thier wealth. In fact, the privilege of wearing the color purple was restricted to only certain social classes. The detailed costumes used in Elizabethan plays were so accurate that they were able to capture the audience and draw them out of their everyday lives. Even viewers who belonged to the lowest classes felt like they understood what it was like to be in an upperclass. I learned a lot of interesting things from watching this movie, and I feel like I have a much better understanding of Elizabethan society.
The thing about this movie that shocked me the most was that Shakespeare was not the most popular playwright of his time. I'm wondering why he was not the most popular then but is by far the most popular now. What made the other playwrights of this time period more popular then he was? Why are they no longer popular today? I also found it incredibly ridiculous that women were not allowed on stage. How could anyone possibly think that by using men to play a female role would make the play any better? Another thing I found unbelievable was how little we know about Shakespeare. He seems like someone that would pull up 25 pages if you looked him up on Wikipedia but we only know 5 things for certain. I'm also wondering if all plays from the renaissance were written in the same flowery, poetic language as Willian Shakespeare's, or if it was one thing that really made his plays stand out. I was surprised to find out that being an actor in the renaissance was incredibly difficult and that a person actually needed to possess a true talent, unlike actors in today's society.
After watching Shakespeare in the classroom, I discovered a lot of new information about Shakespeare and his time period. It is very mind boggling to me that only 5 facts are known about one the greatest playwrights. But the reason he is still studied and his work are still admired today is because he knew what made people tick. The fact that there was separation among social classes is understandable but that the fact that it changed in the theater is hard for me to believe. Even though the people sat by social class they were all there for the same purpose, to watch the play and be entertained. I was interested to find that playwrights of that time just wrote either a tragedy or comedy and so on, but to find that Shakespeare was the first to mix it up made him even more exciting in my eye. He wrote Romeo and Juliet for example in the beginning as a comedy but ended it with a tragedy and in turn it was about a young love. I knew that in the theater women were played by men but I didn’t know it was a law that prohibited women to be on the stage. It is very bizarre to me that women had no choice in who they marry and they could not get an education but the most powerful person in society was an educated woman. By this movie it was brought to my attention that the theater in this time period is the building block of our plays and movies today. There were playwright who wrote the plays. Then there were actors who were making a living off of this. As well there were competition for the best actors and plays. But in contrast plays were sometimes put up in only a week and actors were forced to memorize thousands of lines in days and plays would usually run for 2 or 3 days. In modern times plays run for months and sometimes years and actors have weeks to practice and prepare for opening day. It bothered me that officials could shut down theaters for almost no reason at all. Even though there was little source of entertainment at this time, theaters were still shut down despite of that. But the reason that playwrights were able to progress in this time was because of the Queen. Because of the simple fact that she like to watch plays was the reason playwrights work was able to progress on stage She was a woman and liked plays and she understood why women would cross-dress just to be in plays even though it was prohibited. She was a medieval work-alcoholic and understood how this was an escape for them which I truly believe is understandable.
After watching the video, I was really shocked to find out that there are really only 5 known facts about Shakespeare. I assumed that someone like Shakespeare who is so well known around the world must have a lot of information known about him. Another thing in particular that really surprised me was the rights of women in this time period. The fact that women were not even allowed on stage seems really unreasonable and unfair. Women had to live and do things that society expected and were given very little freedom compared to the men who were dominant over them. I also think it is very ironic that although women were considered to be inferior to men, the most powerful person in the country was Queen Elizabeth. I wonder if Queen Elizabeth ever tried to change the rights of women or if she ever did anything to help women since they were looked down upon so much.
I learned a lot about Shakespeare and his plays from the movie Shakespeare in the Classroom. I thought that a lot was known about Shakespeare himself, so it surprised me to find out that actually so little is known about him. Additionally, I thought it was good that all classes got to see the plays. It is interesting that Shakespeare wrote his plays to relate to all classes and all kinds of people. I was also surprised when I learned that women were forbidden by law to be in the plays, and the women roles had to be played by male actors. Furthermore, I thought it was interesting that, because they weren’t allowed, the women would disguise themselves as men so that they could be given a role. Although they were breaking the law, I can admire these women for their determination. They didn’t let the law stop them from acting in a play. It also surprised me that these laws were enforced on women when Queen Elizabeth I was ruling the country. It makes me wonder why these laws weren’t changed sooner since the country was being run by a woman.
I was shocked when I found out there were only 5 facts known about Shakespeare. I knew that women were not allowed to act in the theater but I did not know that the women would sneak into the theater dressed as men so they could. I hated the irony that a woman (Elizabeth I) ruled the country but woman still had no rights. I also thought the attire of the time was quite interesting, especially for the higher class nobles, lords, queens, and others of that rank. I thought it was funny that anyone below count/ countess could not wear purple and could not afford it either since the purple dye was made out of sea snail shells.
I learned a lot from this movie. What struck me as interesting was Queen Elizabeth. She was very smart, wise, and respected. Ironically during that time period women had almost no rights. For example, women could not vote, recieve a complete education, or be an actress. It is interesting that a women would lead this male-dominated society. Also, Queen Elizabeth never married, but usually an unmarried woman was very poor. Queen Elizabeth was the reason that the theater was allowed and promoted. This is a very interesting concept because if it had been another ruler who ddin't enjoy the theater, Shakespeare and other great playwrights, may not have been remembered. I thought it was an interesting when the movie said the theater was helpful to her because she had to play so many different roles.
It is funny to me that the audience got so into the emotions of the plays. One possible explanation for this is that society was so focused on social classes, that a person could never do anything that was out of their class. In turn, when people went to the theater, they could easily imagine themselves in a different class.
Social classes even limited certain classes to wearing particular colors. Lower class, by law could not wear purple. My question is why was social class extremely important to them when more serious things, such as the black plague, were occuring. On possible answer may be because there was a royal family that lead all the classes and people were subconciously pressed by the royals to uphold the classes.
After watching the video I learned much more about Shakespeare, his plays, and what the theater was like back in his time. His time was around 1593 in London, during the Black Death/Plague. At the beginning of the movie, it stated the only five well knowns facts about Shakespeare. I thought that was interesting, since he is one of the greatest play writers ever known. His style of writing is bold, romantic, tragic, and eye-catching. If you start reading one of his plays, you can't stop reading. In Romeo and Juliet, you know what's going to happen, but you still can't stop reading. You want to go through it until the tragic end, which you hoped wouldn't happen. I thought it was ironic how women were considered to be lower than men, when Queen Elizabeth was higher than all the men. It was very unfair that women had to dress up as men to act and live their dreams. I also found it ironic how, if Queen Elizabeth didn't like the theater, plays would not be very popular. I also learned a few things about how the theater was back then, and how it is so different today. It was outdoors, the actors were from the lower class, it wasn't expensive, people really got into the performances, the actors were usually men, there were no intermissions, and the actors only rehearsed about a week for each show. In the end of Romeo and Juliet, even though we all wanted it to be one of those "happily ever after" stories, I realized that it couldn't have happened any other way because then it wouldn't be the greatest tragic love story ever written.
"Shakespeare in the Classroom" shocked me by the fact that there are only five facts known about Shakespeare, but through his plays we can view his world as he saw it.The theatre was a place where everyone became equal, well except for the groundlings. In our world today, I feel that we need to have a place like the theater. I was also amazed that Queen Elizabeth went to the theatre because she was so work oriented. The theatre became popular because Queen Elizabeth went there and whatever the Queen does everyone must do it too. I was also astonished by the fact that plays didn't mix unlike "Romeo and Juliet" where it is a comedy, romance and tragedy.Yet today we have plays like this that are mixed into many different topics and themes. "Romeo and Juliet" was very popular and is still today, many people across the world either read or perform this wonderful play. Clothing identified people into classes peasants often wore earth tones while the higher class wore silks, velvets and satins and were flashy colors such as golds and purples. It was very interesting that purple was very expensive and to get the color purple they had to crush little sea snails. Finally, I learned that like today many actors needed their chance at fame and to be liked amoung the theatre crowd in order to make money and be accepted and adored amoung society.
I was really surprised to find out that very little was known about Shakespeare. I also never knew that the theaters in the Elizabethan era were open air amphitheaters. For some reason, i always assumed that they were enclosed. I always thought that going to the theater was something that the richer people did. I had no idea that people of all social classes came to see these plays. However, I did know that all the actors were men but not that women were forbidden from going on stage. I did not know that the amount of clothing worn was an inclination to social class or that the color purple was reserved explicitly for those including and above the status of count or countess. I did not know that so much work went into a single play and that actors often memorized whole scripts in just a few days. That is truly amazing because today, actors can spend up to a year working and rehearsing for a play or movie. I had no idea that London officials were so against the theater because of fear of prostitutes and the spreading of the Black Plague. I really thought that the theater would be view as an art form and that officials would recognize it as a reputable establishment. I guess in that way, theaters of Shakespeare's time were so different to the theaters now.
i was so surprised that very little was known about Shakespeare. It is so unusual, because he is known by almost all people and you would expect more people to be able to find things out about him. The facts were also not even very detailed and there was very little information. Only the basic things are known about him. It is also odd, because since he wrote stories, you would wonder why he didn't write very much about his personal life or just everyday things for him.
What I found most interesting in the movie was about the theaters, actors, and costumes. The people during this time needed a way to entertain themselves so they either participated in plays or went to watch them in a theater. The public theaters were built to cater to people of all levels of social class. One of Shakespeare’s greatest strengths was that his play attracted a wide range of levels of income. I didn’t realize that all these people could come and watch these plays. I thought that only the wealthy could go because they had money to see the plays and the poor could not afford them. The lower class people would usually stand on the groundlings and wealthy people would pay to sit in far more lavish places in the theater. Queen Elizabeth often saw many of the plays. If she did not like them, the theaters would be shut down. Queen Elizabeth was a very fashionable person. She wore elaborate dresses that most people could not afford. In the movie, they said she could wear the color purple because it was so expensive to get your hands on purple dye. They also mentioned that she and other wealthy people would give away their old expensive clothing to actors in the plays. I was very surprised the wealthy would be willing to give their clothes away.
While watching the movie it stunned me to find out that there was so little known about Shakespeare. I knew that back in that time period not many things were recorded especially in comparison to all that we record in this day and age but with someone as famous as William Shakespeare would have had many of his important dates written down. I was also surprised that women were so low compared to men that authority went so far as to make an actual law that women could not be on the stage. They would go so far as to shutdown the theater if a women acted on the stage with the men. I was interested to find out about the huge difference in social class with clothing. I knew that there was a difference with the quality of the material but I didn't know how important the colors of the clothing was to the upperclassmen. Knowing how expensive the dye for clothing was, was incredibly shocking. The law that people under the class of a Duke or Duchess could not wear purple showed me how significant colors of clothing was back then. Looking at the clothing today which is very vibrant and colorful it would be very difficult for most of the girls at our school not to be able to wear colorful shirts.
I enjoyed learning more about Shakespeare History. The thing that surprised me the most was the fact that they would not let women act on stage. I would have never thought that would be a problem. It's even crazier that they would close a theatre if they caught a woman acting. That just shows how far women have come in the past hundred years. I also found all the talk about the clothes they would wear interesting. Like how purple meant you were very wealthy and how the wealthier people would wear brighter colors where the middle class would wear dull colors. Last I found very interesting how one of the main reasons theatres were a hit was because Queen Elizabeth loved them. How without her there probably would be no Shakespeare or ALlen or Marlowe. How if she laughed everyone laughed and she had the most privleges in the theatre being the queen.I loved learning all that and would love to learn much more about Shakespeare.
I Learned that it was Best was to entertain yourself was to go to the theater and that it was that f the world where violence was a major part of the plays. People did not often mix comedy and tragedy and it really surprised me that all of the women were played by men and there were no women in plays because it was the law. It surprised me that even though women did not have much power Elizabeth I was the most powerful person in England. It was a popular play that could make a theaters fortune change over night and actors brought the fortune. Plays were such a big deal back then because they were able to tell a story about what happens in everyday life. Like war, love and politics and people related to the plays. I like the video a lot and I learned so much from it. It suprised people that Shakespeare mixed in tragedy with comedy but he soon became one of the best play writers known to man. I was also suprised that Elizabeth could relate to a women wanting to be in a play because she was a woman herself in a mans job.I like how she went to the plays and showed that she could have free time just like everyone else. I liked the way even though she was firm she still should that she could relate with the common people. I learned a lot about the Elizabethan time and i felt it help me understand what I am soon going to be reading.
During the Shakespeare movie I though that I knew so much more about him and his plays. When I was watching it I realized how much more there was to him and his life. I was very surprised to find that there were five known true facts about him. I though it was very interesting that he wrote about power, war ,violence, and passion, these are also things we talk about today. In the theater I think that it is very innovative that they would use costumes from people of nobility. I hated that women were not allowed to act and how they were treated like nothing. I thought it was rather funny that women got no say but the men would all bow down for Queen Elizabeth. The theater to me probably stayed open for as long as it did because Queen Elizabeth had such a love for acting. It's so crazy to think that they would have a play prepared and on stage in only a week when today it takes months and maybe years. In Shakespeare play Romeo and Juliet he tried something so new to the form of art, he mixed tragedy and love. He created so many plays and wrote so many pieces that will never be forgotten.
i personally enjoyed this movie a lot. one thing that i found very interesting was that the most powerful person in all of England was a lady- Queen Elizabeth. another interesting thing is that thank god the queen loved theater because if it wasn't for her love of the plays then we probably wouldn't have all of the Shakespeare plays that we have today. i was also surprised when i heard that Shakespeare's had children. i would have thought that if he had children then you would hear more facts about them, but i never even knew he was a father.
Shakespeare's plays differ greatly from our plays in many ways but one huge difference is the time he took to put them together. Shakespeare's actors took sometimes only 2 to 3 days to put together a play and rehearse when in our day it can take months to even a year. one thing i thought in the movie that was funny was that men would pad their stomachs to make them look fatter. this was a sign of wealth to show they had money to buy food. in our day being fat is usually frowned upon. this movie, overall, i feel helped me very much to understand Shakespeare and his time period better.
I was surprised that we could put all the facts we know about Shakespeare on one piece of paper. I also learned a lot about what people wore during the time. The poor or working usually wore neutral colors and the upper class usually wore colors like blue and purple because they could afford it. They also determined how rich you were by how many layers you wore. Some men would put padding under their outfits to show they could feed themselves. I also learned that the play people would see was very cheap and that is why everyone went to see them. The poor all stood in the pit closest to the stage, and the upper class would pay more to sit under a roof higher up, and they could rent a cushion to sit on. Queen Elizabeth really enjoyed plays, and if it wasn't for her plays probably wouldn't go on, because some of the government officials didn't like a lot of people meeting together, because they could start talking about how much they made at work, and could want more. I also learned that women were not allowed on the stage, I thought that people just didn't like them on the stage. They also had to learn a script in a small amount of time, and regularly they would be learning a script for their next play during their current play.
Charlotte J
I was amazed to find out that it was against the law to have a woman up on stage. Queen Elizabeth was the most powerful person in that kind of society and loved watching the plays. It's confusing to think that a woman with that kind of power wouldn't change the law to permit a woman being up on stage. The people back then seemed to be quite fond of violence in plays which was a little odd to me. People wouldn't go to a play unless it had at least one good stabbing. The preparation for plays seemed much harder back in the day than in our time. A man had to memorize hundreds of lines in just one day. Rehearsal time was very short and the play would go on in about a week. I found it funny that the men would pad their tummies just to show everyone that they could afford a good amount to feed themselves. Finally,I did not expect to hear that the theatre was a place where the plague was spread.
Emily M
The one thing that I was shocked the most to learn about was that we only know 5 things about Shakespeare. Before I learned that I would of never thought that. Another interesting thing to learn about was how you could tell the difference between the upper and lower class was by the color clothes they wear. Also the lower class could not wear purple because purple was a very expensive color to wear. I also found it interesting that the men stuffed their stomachs to make themselves look fat, in order for people to know that they could afford to buy food. Another thing that shocked me was how women could not be on stage. I found it funny that men were forced to dress as women to play their parts, because women could not be on stage. Another thing I learned was that Elizabeth the first loved the theater. I thought the overall movie was interesting
I found it incredibly interesting to find out that William Shakespear only had five known fatcs about his life. Even though we see him as one of the most amazing play writers of all time, people really do not know anything about his life. I also found it interesting that people mainly learn about him through his literature. The Elizabethan time was also very entertaining. The everyday things that people do in our day and age were normally illegal for the citizens of that time. Such as citizens could not wear purple unless they were a duke or dutchess or above. The queen had great power over her people, even though she was never married. Times have changed, because in America, we do not really have a lot of women in high power offices. I also found it interesting that only men could act, even though women could bring such charisma to the stage. Over all, I thought the documentary was very interesting, and I am eager to learn more.
I learned many interesting facts about Shakespeare and the theater in the old days from this video. I was surprised to find out that there are only 5 known facts about Shakespeare. With all of his writing history, one would think there would be so many possible ways to find information about him. I learned that he was not always the most popular writer of his time. He was at points in 2nd or 3rd for popularity. His universal understanding of human condition made work seem contemporary. In the video, I found it interesting that the London officials hated the theater and they were allowed to close them down. I also found it interesting that they did not allow girls to participate in the plays. I know that women of the time were not looked very highly upon, but why would they have men play women when they could get women from anywhere? I was surprised to find out that the theaters were outside and not under a roof. The expensive seats were shaded but the middle of the theater where the lower classes stood was not. I was amazed when in the video they said how long a play is rehearsed. Only a week is very, very impressive for preparing for performances. This movie helped me have a better understanding about Shakepeare and where his writing comes from.
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