Globe Theatre replica for Auckland

‘THIS WOODEN O’: When 17th century playwright William Shakespeare wrote the words “How many ages hence shall this our lofty scene be acted over in states unborn and accents yet unknown”, he probably did not have a pop-up, plywood replica of his theatre set in Auckland in mind. As seen in this rendering, the Pop-up Globe Theatre is situated behind the Silo Theatre in Auckland Central. Picture supplied

TO MARK the 400th anniversary of 17th century playwright William Shakespeare, a full-scale, working replica of London’s Globe Theatre is to be installed in Auckland.

The steel-framed and plywood-skinned theatre will literally pop up behind Auckland central’s Aotea Square, stage a rich menu of Shakespeare’s comedies, tragedies and romances, then disappear again.

The Pop-up Globe Theatre is a replica of the 1614 circular theatre built on the south bank of the Thames River. The circular structure was the venue many of Shakepeare’s plays were written for.

The Globe’s history is a little complicated, however. The first Globe Theatre was built in 1599 from timbers ferried across the Thames to the south bank from a deconstructed theatre on the other side. The Globe went up in flames during a performance of Henry VIII in 1613. A theatrical cannon misfired during a show and ignited the wooden beams and thatching.

A second Globe Theatre was built the following year. In 1997, a modern Globe theatre was built a short distance from the site of the original.

To accommodate the dimensions of the contemporary theatre-goer, this is a slightly bigger structure, but the spirit of it, and the way it functions, is the essentially the same.

The Pop-up Globe is an exact replica of the second Globe Theatre, which was built on the ruins of the first Globe in 1614.

The circular structure’s thrust stage is encircled by three tiers of seating with a standing-room area in front of the stage for “groundlings”.

Encouraging intimacy with the audienceThe theatre’s design makes for such an intimate experience, members of the modern Globe theatre’s cast are encouraged to make eye contact with people in the audience.

There is no illusion of the fourth wall. As seen in a setting like the Globe Theatre, Shakespeare’s plays do not pretend not to be plays. The opening lines to Henry V, the play that opened the 1997 replica, include a reference to “this wooden O”, the theatre itself.

“But pardon, and gentles all,

The flat unraised spirits that have dared

On this unworthy scaffold to bring forth

So great an object: can this cockpit hold

The vasty fields of France? or may we cram

Within this wooden O the very casques

That did affright the air at Agincourt?”

The globe itself encompasses the world.

The Pop-up Globe Theatre programme opens on February 19 with the tragedy Romeo and Juliet. Along with Shakespeare’s comedy Twelfth Night, the shows will be presented by the Pop-up Globe Theatre Company.

Auckland University Students’ Association Summer Shakespeare Trust will present the playwright’s mysterious romance, The Tempest. Performed by a full cast and live musicians, this production marks a new departure in AUSA Outdoor Summer Shakespeare’s 50-plus-year history.

Other productions at the Pop-up Globe include the comedy Much Ado About Nothing, the dramatic history Henry V; tragedies Antony and Cleopatra, Hamlet, and Shakespeare’s Tarantino-esque early work, Titus Andronicus.

• For more information and bookings visit http://www.popupglobe.co.nz