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Hamlet
Hamlet is one of Shakespeare's most popular work. It "is based on a Norse legend composed by Saxo Grammaticus in Latin around 1200 AD" (Actors' Shakespeare Project para 1). Hamlet was written sometime between 1600 to 1601. It did not take long for the play to become popular to the society. According to MJ Franklin in "Three Cheers for 'Hamlet,' the Greatest Shakespeare Play of All Time," Hamlet was popular for it had shown "grief, betrayal, love (or the lack thereof) and family." -
Period: to
17th Century France/Neoclassicism
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Twelfth Night
Twelfth Night is one of Shakespeare's greatest comedys for its tangled love inteterests mess. The play is considered a romantic comedy, written in 1601 and shown to the public in 1602. It was first performed in at "the hall of the Middle Temple, one of the Inns of Court where lawyers were trained in," instead of having it performed at the Globe (Twelfth Night (2012) para 2). -
Fuente Ovejuna
Fuente Ovejuna was written by Lope de Vega in the year 1613. It was "one of the most eminent playwrights of Spain’s golden age of drama" (Chicagoreader para 3). Lope was inspired to write this play by events that took place in Andalusian town of Fuente Obejuna. The townspeople went against their "tyrannical overlord" and killed him. The king then had an inspector to find out who had been the murderer. No one would admit. "Their unanimous response: 'Fuente Obejuna did it" (Rampell para 3). -
Shakespeare's Death
Shakespeare died on April 23rd, 1616, exactly fifty-two years after he was born. He might have been known world-wide, but his death was not a huge impact on the society, as they more mourned over other people. "Earlier English poets had been mourned at their passing, if not in these terms and not on this scale, then with more enthusiasm than was evident at the death of Shakespeare" (Ian para 25). To add on to this note, there was also no memorial gathering over his death. -
Life Is a Dream
Calderón de la Barca wrote Life Is a Dream in 1635, shown to the public a year later. It was popular for being "one of Spain's greatest dramatists, and, after Lope De Vega (1562-1635), the foremost playwright of Spain's Golden Age" (Drama for Students para 1). The play was originally performed inside Buen Retiro, the royal theater. Life Is a Dream also wanted to focus on tradition, not drama. Ever since the seventeenth century has ended, Spanish drama no longer was popular to the society. -
Le Cid Changes View, Declaring Neoclassicism as the Dominant Mode in French Drama
Over a French Academy ruling disagreements on the play Le Cid, it declared neoclassicism as the dominant mode in French drama. (Brockett 137). "With Le Cid, Corneille," the creator of the play, "changed the form of the dramatic play, a transformation that was met with great applause not only from the audience but from the ruling monarch at the time, King Louis XIII of France." (Drama for Students para 1). -
Civil War Brought the Closure of All Theaters
Civil war broke out in the year 1642, causing theaters in England to close for eighteen years to prevent public disorder. It was "causing considerable hardship to professional theatre performers, managers and writers" (V&A · The Story of Theatre para 10). Due to the cause of all theaters being forced to be shut down, some theaters were demolished, as there was also irregular events of illegal performances. -
Tartuffe Gets Banned
Tartuffe was released in two different versions--1664 and 1669. This is because the first version was banned. No one knows what the original looked like, however. "Copies of Molèire’s 1664 script were banned, burned, and lost to history after leaders of the Catholic church condemned the comedy as an attack on religion" (A Note from the Dramaturg: Tartuffe para 1). After five years, the second version of Tartuffe was released, King Louis permitting it to be shown for public performance. -
The Servant of Two Masters
The Servant of Two Masters was written in the year 1743. Carlo Goldoni wanted to incorporate his main change to the play of tradition commedia dell'arte. The play has characters that are over exaggerated in their personalities, making the cast colorful. "The Servant of Two Masters does not achieve a high level of characterization or social commentary, but Goldoni was not seeking profundity" (Brockett pg 126). He more than likely wanted the audience to see the play more out of enjoyment. -
French Revolution Effects Theater
The French Revolution lasted for ten years, 1789-1799, and impacted the world immensely, including theater. "Theater and nation were closely entwined," however, due to the Revolution, government began to change as France expanded its borders (Age of Revolutions para 2). Theater arts were beginning to be censored. If a play were to be censored, it would be banned entirely, or it would rewritten, "[d]espite the “freedom of the theaters” in 1791" (Para 4).