On the afternoon of June 14, 2018, Michael Dobson, professor of Shakespeare Center, Stratford-upon-Avon, delivered a lecture entitled “Shakespeare at the centre and at the margins: Shakespearean playhouses, 1576-2018” at Room 201 of Building East 5, Zhejiang University. The lecture was hosted by Professor Shen Hong, with the presence of students and teachers of School of International Studies, including Professor Hao Tianhu and Doctor Ding Guang. Professor Dobson and Professor Tiffany Stern visited Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies and had an academic discussion with students and teachers of SIS that morning.
Shakespeare’s plays used to be performed only at a public playhouse named “Playhouse” in 1576. However, they shine even brighter in 2018 after the vicissitudes for over 400 years. The intertextuality between the playhouse and texts empowers the audience and readers fond of his plays the opportunity to enjoy his classics. The lecture approaches from a unique perspective that Shakespeare’s plays could not be performed without playhouses, and the playhouses, as venues for cultural activities, are definitely tagged with culture, economy and politics of then era. Professor Dobson first talked about the location, southern London for the playhouse, which he said, though of minor significance, actually highlighted financial concern of playhouses and the commercial essence of plays in the Shakespearean era.
The stages were simple in the Elizabethan period. Take the Swan (theatre) in 1596 as an example, it only consisted of a platform which lay in an outdoor courtyard surrounded by audience on three sides. However, it improved under King James’ governance. According to the existing draft of Globe Theatre in 1638, Shakespeare’s plays could be performed at better theaters, as the Globe was one of the grandest buildings in London back then. So it’s clear that both popularity and cultural impact of his plays increased dramatically after Shakespeare’s passing away. Besides, Globe Theatre was of commercial value and unique social value. James I awarded a royal title “the King’s Men” to Shakespeare Theatre Company after being enthroned in 1603. Since then, Globe Theatre has been a symbol of royal entertainment, not merely a playhouse for light or sorrowful plays.
Among all the modern theaters, Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, built at Stratford-upon-Avon in 1879, is the first of its kind in the English world Its marked an advancement of Shakespeare from being a margin role to a center, and his plays became the cultural symbols of the UK. Apart from Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare Theatres have been erected in cities, e.g. Norwich, Cornwall, Florence, Chicago and San Diego.
Professor Dobson reproduced the style and features of a past era with a large number of manuscripts and pictures. He dug into play’s cultural connotation from playhouses and made the audience realize how Shakespeare’s plays were received in history and how Shakespeare’s journey from a margin one to a center was reflected in the construction of playhouses. With pictures and captions, the lecture got across to the audience effectively.
Written by Lin Weijian and photographed by Feng Yuchu & Ding Hao
Translated by Li Jia and Zhou Xingchen
Edited by Xu Xueying