Shakespeare's Globe Playhouse

[Philip]

When Shakespeare first came to London in the early 1590's he found employment with a troupe of actors, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, who performed in a structure called, appropriately enough, The Theatre in Shoreditch, north of the River Thames. All in all things were going pretty well for them until the owner of the land where the theatre stood made serious attempts to evict the company and take it over. So at a time when the landowner was out of town for a bit Shakespeare and his chums completely dismantled the building, bundled the bits into ox-carts, trundled across London Bridge, and came to a halt in Southwark on the south bank of the river. There The Theatre was rebuilt and renamed "The Globe". Now Southwark at that time was a far from a salubrious area, and The Globe's near neighbours included brothels, gambling dens, a bear-baiting pit, the infamous Clink prison and a rival theatre. Despite all this (or because of it) The Globe was a runaway success and our Will came out with lots of neat stuff to keep the punters happy. Nothing could go wrong.

Until, that is, 1613. During a performance of Henry VIII a prop cannon was fired on stage. Some of the glowing wadding from the explosion floated up to the straw roof of the gallery and you can guess what happened next. Being completely wooden it burnt to the ground. Undeterred, our thespians had another rebuild the following year and it remained wowing the crowds until 1644 when it was pulled down by the then Puritan authorities, along with all other places where folk could go to enjoy themselves.

The third Globe was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1997, next door to its original site which had become a parking lot for refuse lorries, and was the brainchild of film director Sam Wanamaker, who sadly died before its completion.

This particular model represents the original incarnation of the Globe, as far as anyone knows, and was published by Oxford Crafts, New York, 1973. It's quite small, the base being a little larger than a drinks coaster. There are no glue tabs: everything is butt-joined. Parts fit? Don't get me started! It was built as a birthday present for a friend who does voluntary work for The Shakespeare Globe Trust.

Still packing them in: Welcome to Shakespeare's Globe | London

[Mike Stamper]

Nice work - shame about the kit .-)

Mike

[Vermin_King]

Boy, did you ever set me off on a few rabbit trails...


Thanks


And thanks for the link. 50 Shakespeare words and their meanings | Blogs & features | Shakespeare's Globe

[Michael Mash]

Hello Phillip,
Thank you for some fascinating history about the “Bard” and his Globe Theatre.
If I am not mistaken, one of his most notable lines was first pronounced on that stage:

“To Build, or not to Build, That is the Question!”

[rjccjr]

Hi;

I always that Noah said that. Oh well. Good thoughts are often repeated.

Regards, rjccjr

[Madbrit]

"The quality of this build is not strained" "Is this a build I see before me?" "When will we builders meet again ?" "When we build do we not use paper like you ?" The list is endless....

Derek

[Philip]

Thank you for your responses, friends. Dare I add a quote of my own?

"O, wonder!
How many goodly paper modellers are there here!
How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world,
That has such builders in't."

[ReynoldsSlumber]

Too neat! And I love the "cut-away view." Fine work with the word-smithing as well.

Here's a rough ~1/48 approximation I made in the days of yore, based upon an image out of a textbook I think. Some cardstock in there, but also balsa wood etc... and "thatching."