Remains of William Shakespeare’s first theatre found!
Archaeologists have found the remains of London’s first theatre in
London yard - the site where William Shakespeare’s plays were performed.
Archaeologists have been digging since 2008 and have uncovered a section
of outer wall and floor surface from the building, completed in 1576 and
known simply as ‘The Theatre’ - whose timbers were later used to build
‘The Globe theatre’.
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William Shakespeare |
The Tower Theatre Company bought the site a few years ago and asked
Museum of London archaeologists to have a look.
“We thought we’d better find out whether there was anything under
there that would stop us building,” the Canadian Press quoted Penny
Tuerk, chair of the troupe’s trustees, as saying.
“And they came back and said, ‘’Actually, we’ve found a bit of Tudor
brickwork.’’ We got tremendously excited at that point,” he added. The
remains of ‘The Theatre’, were Elizabethan drama flourished more than
400 years ago, were discovered underneath a Victorian warehouse.
It is thought that plays including Romeo and Juliet and The Merchant
of Venice - as well as works by Christopher Marlowe and Thomas Kyd -
were performed at ‘The Theatre’, which served as a base for
Shakespeare’s troupe, the Chamberlain’s Men.
The remains of the original theatre will be displayed under glass as
part of the new building, but the structure will be thoroughly modern.
“We’re not trying to recreate the 16th-century theatre. We’re trying
to recreate the spirit of the 16th-century theatre,” said Tuerk.
Hindustan Times |
