Tradesmen
People stood because they could not afford to buy tickets to the part of the theatre where there were seats. Instead they stood in "the pit" immediately in front of the stage and were called "groundlings" because they stood on the ground.
There were the groundlings (people who stood on the floor I front of the stage) and the higher class who sat on wooden benches on the three tiers of the theatre
From the standing area in front of the stage.
Shakespeare had an interest in at least two theatres. His company, the king's men, owned the Globe and Blackfriars theatres. Some people think they may have had an interest in the Curtain theatre since that was the one they moved to when the Theatre was closed.
The kind of people for whom it was worth standing through a play to save a penny i.e. either very cheap or poor.
People stood because they could not afford to buy tickets to the part of the theatre where there were seats. Instead they stood in "the pit" immediately in front of the stage and were called "groundlings" because they stood on the ground.
There were the groundlings (people who stood on the floor I front of the stage) and the higher class who sat on wooden benches on the three tiers of the theatre
From the standing area in front of the stage.
From the standing area in front of the stage.
Shakespeare had an interest in at least two theatres. His company, the king's men, owned the Globe and Blackfriars theatres. Some people think they may have had an interest in the Curtain theatre since that was the one they moved to when the Theatre was closed.
The kind of people for whom it was worth standing through a play to save a penny i.e. either very cheap or poor.
On the ground directly in front of the stage. They paid a penny to stand there, and are known as "groundlings".
The people who watched the play at the front of the theatre were commonly referred to as the "groundlings." This term specifically describes the lower-class audience members who stood in the pit area of Elizabethan theatres, such as the Globe Theatre, where they could pay a lower price to watch performances. Groundlings were known for their lively reactions and engagement with the performance.
Those were the "groundlings" or also known as the common people/ poor people. The commoners had to pay a penny to watch the play, which was often only an entire day's pay.
Quod fere totus mundus exerceat histrionem, "because all the world plays the actor".
Queen Elizabeth never set foot in the Globe Theatre, that was for lower class citizens. She dud, however have private plays and performances in her private chambers. Shakespeare performed for her 14 times.
in front of the stage was called the pit and the ceiling below the roof was called the 'heavens' Groundlings or Penny Standers stood around the stage in the Yard or Pit. Middle Class patrons sat in the Galleries. Lords Rooms (Elizabethan Skyboxes) were reserved for the wealthiest patrons.