way2go! 7. Coursebook, Schulbuch

124 Unit 08 | Culture vulture Skim the article below and underline any facts that you find strange or surprising. With a partner, try to agree on the two most surprising facts. Now read the text closely. Answer the questions (1–8) using a maximum of four words. Write your answers in the spaces provided. The first one (0) has been done for you. READING 7 a M p. 46 b When Shakespeare was low culture What are you doing this evening? If you tell people you are going to the theatre to see a performance of a Shakespeare play, they may think you are into high culture. So it might surprise you to know that Shakespeare and his contemporaries such as Christopher Marlowe and Ben Jonson have not always been seen in this light. Read on to find out why. What did people in the 1600s do for fun? After all, there was no TV, no social media and not even radio. The answer is they went to the theatre – not just the rich, but everybody. However, at that time the theatre did not have a good reputation. London authorities refused to allow theatres within the city, so they opened across the Thames in Southwark (pronounced ‘suthuck’), outside the city boundaries. The city of London disapproved of theatre because public performances were thought to be a breeding ground for the plague and for indecent behaviour. The theatre often served as a place for prostitutes to find their customers, and many people disliked the fact that the theatre allowed several different social groups to mix together. Also, since theatre performances took place in the middle of the day, they took workers away from their jobs, which employers were unhappy about. The first proper theatre as we know it was The Theatre , built in Shoreditch in 1576. Before this time, plays used to be performed in the courtyard of inns, or, sometimes, in the houses of noblemen. A noble- man had to be careful about which play he allowed to be performed within his home, however. Anything that was too political or seemed disloyal was likely to get him in trouble with the Queen or King, and this could lead to imprisonment or even execution! The most famous playhouse was The Globe , built in 1599 by the company in which Shakespeare had invested money. In 1613, a cannon fired during a performance of Henry VIII set the roof on fire, and unfortunately The Globe burned to the ground. The site of the theatre was rediscovered in the 20 th century and a reconstruction built near the spot, by which time, of course, Shakespeare’s work was very much high culture. These theatres could hold several thousand people, most standing in the open pit before the stage, though rich nobles could watch the play from a chair set on the side of the stage itself. Theatre performances were held in the afternoon because there was no artificial lighting. Women attended plays, though no women were allowed to perform in them. Female roles were generally performed by young boys. The theatres were very unhealthy as there were no toilet facilities and people relieved themselves outside. Sewage was buried in pits or disposed of in the River Thames. This improper sanitation could have been responsible for outbreaks of the plague. As you can see, there were many practical reasons why performances in the city were unacceptable to the London authorities and how theatre was seen as low culture. Furthermore, there was an ethical drawback: At certain times in history, the Church con- sidered actors and dancers immoral and refused to marry or bury them. Even the famous French playwright Molière was refused a church burial. Nu zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv