What caused all the Theatres in London to close down between 1593 and 1594?



Plague had posed an ongoing danger in England since before the time of Shakespeare’s birth, but a particularly devastating outbreak of the disease swept the country in 1593 and 1594. During especially intense epidemics, the Privy Council would exercise its authority as the queen’s advisors to close all public theaters.

What caused all the theatres in London to be closed between 1593 and 1594?

Waves of the bubonic plague killed at least a third of the European population across centuries. A year or so before Shakespeare wrote “Romeo and Juliet,” a powerful plague struck London in 1593. Theatres closed for 14 months and 10,000 Londoners died, says Columbia University professor and author James Shapiro.

What closed the theaters from 1592 to 1594?

the plague





Between 1592 and 1594, when the theatres were frequently closed because of the plague, he wrote his earliest poems Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece. They were published in 1593 and 1594 respectively, and dedicated to his patron the 3rd Earl of Southampton.

What caused the close of Shakespeare’s theater?

In 1613, it burned to the ground when the roof caught fire during a performance of Shakespeare’s Henry VIII. A new, second Globe was quickly built on the same site, opening in 1614.

Why did the theatres in London close in the early 1590S?

What Caused The Theatres In London To Close Their Doors In The Early 1590S? A plague outbreak occurred in London in early 1600s, closing the Globe Theatre that same year. The plague first hit Shakespeare’s fellow Londoners around 1606, causing over ten deaths. The plague returned there in 1610 a second time, he says.

Why did theaters close in 1593?

Plague had posed an ongoing danger in England since before the time of Shakespeare’s birth, but a particularly devastating outbreak of the disease swept the country in 1593 and 1594. During especially intense epidemics, the Privy Council would exercise its authority as the queen’s advisors to close all public theaters.



What closed down the London theaters?



On September 2, 1642, just after the First English Civil War had begun, the Long Parliament ordered the closure of all London theatres. The order cited the current “times of humiliation” and their incompatibility with “public stage-plays”, representative of “lascivious Mirth and Levity”.

Why was the Globe Theater often closed?

The little known reasons why the Globe Theatre closed: Religious holidays such as Lent – in 1615 Burbage and Heminges had to appear before the Privy Council on behalf of the Globe theatre for playing in Lent. Bad weather – the Globe Theatre was a summer venue and was closed during the cold winter months.

What did Shakespeare do when the theaters closed?

We’ve all heard how super-productive William Shakespeare was when the plague shut down his theaters: He wrote his epic poems Venus and Adonis and Lucrece during the epidemic of 1592-1593, and “all of [his] Jacobean plays, from Measure For Measure through Coriolanus” during or not long after later outbreaks.