“How ill this taper burns!” e Dramaturgy of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar at the Globe

Abstract

The Globe theatre, built in London in 1599, is the prime example of the Renaissance stage and its associated conventions, and this article points to the variety of ways in
which William Shakespeare’s immediate physical environment is inscribed in his work. The article discusses the structural features and theatrical resources of the Globe with reference to Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. The structure of the playhouse, the expectations of its audiences, and the resources at the disposal of the playing company all helped to shape Shakespeare’s dramaturgy. Key moments from the play text are employed in order to illustrate the significance of working conditions in Shakespeare’s writing for the new playhouse, with three scenes from Julius Caesar discussed in detail. The scenic economy of the Renaissance stage is considered in terms of theatre historian J. L. Styan’s principle of “imaginative neutrality,” and the importance of three-dimensional staging and a collaborative audience is highlighted. The concept of metatheatre, which applies to moments of theatrical self-consciousness that draw attention to the status of a given play as a fiction, is discussed with reference to the local significance of performances at the Globe, and to Shakespeare’s use of anachronisms in a Roman setting. The article also discusses the rapid progress of time and transposition of scenes which characterise Julius Caesar in terms of dramatic intensity, and suggests that these are resultant from the conditions of performance at the playhouse