Main entry:

Orrell, John.

Title & Author:

The human stage : English theatre design, 1567-1640 / John Orrell.

Publication:

Cambridge [England] ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 1988.

Description:

xix, 292 pages : illustrations ; 26 cm

Notes:
Includes bibliographical references (pages 259-283) and index.
Preface; Acknowledgements; Prologue; Part I. Festive Theatres: 1. Goodly theatres; 2. The festive tradition; 3. Goodly devices: emblematic design; 4. The stage cover; 5. John Norden's pictures of the theatres; 6. This majestical roof; 7. The Elizabethan Banqueting House, Whitehall; Part II. Serlian Theatres: 8. The Christ Church theatre; 9. Serlio's theatre plan; 10. This goodly frame: the public theatres; 11. The Court theatres; 12. The private theatres; Part III. Serlian Scenes: 13. Serlio's measurable scene designs; 14. Inigo Jones's scene designs; Appendix: Serlio's virtual field of vision; Notes; Index.

Summary:

This book describes the theatres of the time of Shakespeare and Ben Jonson in the light of the contemporary architectural thought and building design. John Orrell incorporates recent discoveries about the structure of theatres such as the Red Lion playhouse (1567), the Christ Church Theatre, Oxford (1605) and the Paved Court Theatre, Somerset House (1632) in a re-examination of old assumptions about their design and origins. Orrell shows that the first public theatres, exemplified by the Globe on the Bankside, were fully realised architectural ideas, not ad hoc improvisations. Indoor playhouses, such as the Blackfriars and the Cockpit, Drury Lane, show clear signs of having been influenced by the theatre scheme of Sebastiano Serlio, a scheme which is human in scale, methodical in development and Roman in plan. Serlio's scheme is identified as a common link between the great public theatres of Shakespeare's time, the major private theatres and the Court masques designed by Inigo Jones. The story of the early stages is thus more coherent and more interesting than has been supposed. The book is extensively illustrated with contemporary views of London, theatre plans and scene designs.

Resources:
Table of contents
Table of contents
Publisher description

ISBN:

0521308593
9780521308595

Subject:

Theater architecture England.
Architecture, Renaissance England.
Architecture England History 17th century.
Theaters England Design and construction History 17th century.
Architecture des théâtres Angleterre.
Architecture de la Renaissance Angleterre.
Architecture Angleterre Histoire 17e siècle.
Architecture.
Architecture, Renaissance.
Theater architecture.
Theater
Theater architecture Great Britain.
Architecture, Renaissance Great Britain.
Architecture, Modern Great Britain History.
Théâtre Grande-Bretagne Conception et construction Histoire 16e siècle.
Théâtres Grande-Bretagne Conception et construction Histoire 17e siècle.
Architecture moderne 17e siècle Grande-Bretagne.
Architecture de la Renaissance Grande-Bretagne.
England.
Großbritannien
England Theatres Architectural design, 1567-1640

Form/genre:

History.

Holdings:

Location: Library main 25020
Call No.: ID:88-B11241
Status: Available