8-3Actors

//Answer prepared by Emily C.//
According to Stephanie Lowell, William Shakespeare, Edward Alleyn, Christopher Beeston, Henry Condell, John Heminges, John Lowin, William Kempe, and Joseph Taylor were the most famous of the Elizabethan actors. The theater became a great social attraction and the popularity of the Elizabethan theater was enormous. They were treated like superstars in their time and were even able to perform for royalty frequently. Many of the major Elizabethan actors became wealthy men. They shared the plays’ profits and worked together to train any new members. Since it was illegal for women to be onstage acting, all of the Elizabethan actors were men.

[|Elizabethan Actors]

[|Edward Alleyn] was a member of the Worcester's Men and the Admiral's Men. Alleyn became famous for acting in the plays “Tamburlaine”, “Doctor Faustus”, and “The Jew of Malta.” [|Christopher Beeston] was a member of the Chamberlains Men and the Queen Anne's Men. At the start of his career he was an actor with Strange's Men. In addition to being an actor, he was also a theatrical entrepreneur. [|Henry Condell] was a member of the Chamberlain's Men and the King's Men. He acted solely at the [|Globe Theatre]. He is famous for being the joint editor of the First Folio, a collection of Shakespeare’s work. [|John Heminges] was a member of the Chamberlain’s Men and the King’s Men. He is famous for editing the First Folio along with Henry Condell who belonged to the same acting troupes also. [|John Lowin] acted with the Admirals Men and the Chamberlain’s men. He acted at the Rose Theatre, one of the Globe’s fiercest competitors. William Kempe was a member of Lord Strange’s Men, the Chamberlain’s Men, the Leicester’s Men and the Admiral’s Men. He acted in the early plays of William Shakespeare including Romeo and Juliet, where he played Peter. [|Robert Armin] was a member of the Lord Chamberlin’s Men and the Chandos Company. Armin was an actor as well as a writer and comedian.

Edward Alleyn

J.M. Pressely explains that Shakespeare’s plays required difficult and various skills so the actors chosen to participate had to be very talented. They were all expected to perform their own stunts, including sword fighting, falling to the ground convincingly, and they had to have a great memory. To eliminate the competition, The Globe Theatre produced “eleven performances of ten different plays in just two weeks.” They had minimal time to practice and memorize their lines; sometimes the actors would even get their lines as the play was in progress. The Elizabethan actors were also very talented in the way that many had to play multiple roles in the play. The actors intentionally over-acted the scenes to make sure that the audience understood what was happening throughout the play.

__Works Cited__ Cowell, Stephanie. //The Players: A Novel of the Young Shakespeare//. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 1997.

Grote, David. //The Best Actors in the World: Shakespeare and His Acting Company//. Westport, Connecticut: Green Wood Press, 2002.

Pressely, J.M. “Shakespeare’s Globe.” __Shakespeare__ __Resource__ __Center__. February 18, 2008 .Visited April 6, 2009.

Pressely, J.M. “Elizabethan England.” __Shakespeare__ __Resource__ __Center__. February 18, 2008 . Visited April 6, 2009.

Secara, Maggie. A Compendium of Common Knowlege, 1588-1603: Elizabethan Commonplaces for Writers, Actors & Re-enactors. Los Angelos: Popinjay Press, 2008.

Woog, Adam. //An Actor on the Elizabethan Stage.// San Diego: Lucent Books, 2002.

