The Globe Theatre Thatched Roof

The seats are simple benches though cushions can be hired for performances and the globe has the first and only thatched roof permitted in london since the great fire of 1666.

The globe theatre thatched roof.

When shakespeare s playhouse burned down on 29 june 1613 the original globe theatre in london where most of william shakespeare s plays debuted was destroyed by fire during a performance of all is true known to modern audiences as henry viii. Swift reconstruction did take place and the globe reopened to the public within a year with the addition of a tiled roof. People on bankside the river thames waterfront in front of shakespeare s globe theatre central london on a hot summer day. The modern thatch is well protected by fire retardants and sprinklers on the roof ensure further protection against fire.

The globe was the primary home of shakespeare s acting company beginning in late 1599 and it is a possibility that as you like it was written especially for the occasion. Bundles of straw or reed were piled on to the frame of the roof. Detail of the globe theatre showing straw thatched roof oak timbers and joints and whitewashed plastered walls the shakespeare globe theatre. On june 29 1613 during a performance of henry viii a misfired canon ball set the globe s thatched roof on fire and the whole theatre was consumed.

When it was built in 1996 the replica of the original theatre became the city s first thatched. Shakespeare s company built the globe only because it could not use the special roofed facility blackfriars theatre that james burbage the father of their leading actor richard burbage had built in 1596 for it inside the city. The material used to make a thatched roof was either straw or reeds. The elder burbage had a long history as a theatrical entrepreneur.

Historians scholars and architects all worked together in their efforts to build the globe in the same way the lord chamberlain s men did down to the green oak pillars and thatched roof. When shakespeare s globe opened in 1997 it was the first thatch roofed building permitted in the british capital since the great fire of london in 1666. Their work and dreams were fulfilled when the new globe theatre opened in 1997 one street away from where the original stood. The globe theatre london thatch stock photos and images 87 page 1 of 1.

The globe theater architecture featured a thatched roof. Work to replace the thatched roof of the iconic shakespeare s globe theatre in london has begun.