Notes

While Elizabethan theatre was thriving before the Globe Theater was built, it was performed in courtyards and a few other multiple use sites in London, and under London rules.  Not the first structure in England to concentrate on theatre production, The Globe theatre was an early structure built solely for play production, and on the Left Bank of the Thames, technically out of London’s jurisdiction and therefore free of the censorship of London’s Mayor.  Also, the Left Bank was considered a less desirable neighborhood, which became more “trendy” and valuable as the theatre profession flourished there.  Today, the re-invention of the Globe Theatre, using the original design as reconceived by archeologists and theatre scholars, serves as one of the most popular tourists sites in London, and houses restaged versions of many Elizabethan plays.  The home of Shakespeare’s theatre company, the Queen’s Men (later the King’s Men), it gave stability and a ready outlet for Shakespeare’s work.