Theatre
English Renaissance theatre, or early modern English Theatre, is probably where the idea of modern day theatre began. This era was dominated by playwrights such as Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare – Whose plays are still popular to this day. (Willaim Shakespeare Info 2011) (Marlowe Society 2011)
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| Christopher Marlowe - A Popular Playwright (Corpus Chrisi College 1953) |
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| William Shakespeare - His plays are still popular to this day (Bate, J. 1997) |
In my opinion, English Renaissance theatre is most relevant to my Present Day post. There is also still an interest in this in the present day and it looks as though much of today’s theatre has been inspired by this style of theatre. Even today Shakespeare’s plays are studied within schools, and are still said to be fantastic pieces of work. They are even still performed in theatres and have had many modern interpretations of them. This just shows that the popularity of this has grown over the years, into what we see it now in the present day.
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Hamlet (The Arden Shakespeare, Third Series) (Shakespeare 1599/1601) |
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Hamlet (2009) A modern day adaptation - it is still popular to this day. |
Previously theatre had been very rudimentary, with companies of players travelling around the country visiting noble households to perform, rather than performing in the theatre. These actually were the beginnings of the modern ‘idea’ of theatre, and in time these players settled to perform in one place and a law was passed in 1572 to label all companies without formal patronage ‘vagabonds’. “And all fencers, bear-wards, common players in interludes, and minstrels not belonging to any baron of this realm” (will be labelled a vagabond).
This forced the travelling companies to settle down, and began the birth of modern day theatre as we know it.
This idea of ‘travelling companies’ is a very popular one; it has even inspired some popular books about them. They are very frequently added into historical fantasy books. Obviously this has now died out, especially with the laws put in place to stop it happening, but without these companies theatre today might not have existed as we know it.
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| An Illustration of members of a travelling company in 1600 (Encyclopaedia Britannica 1994) |
This forced the travelling companies to settle down, and began the birth of modern day theatre as we know it.
This idea of ‘travelling companies’ is a very popular one; it has even inspired some popular books about them. They are very frequently added into historical fantasy books. Obviously this has now died out, especially with the laws put in place to stop it happening, but without these companies theatre today might not have existed as we know it.
During the 18th century, there was a very famous manager and playwright named David Garrick (1717 – 1779). He was one of the first people within the theatre world to adopt a more natural form of speaking and acting that was closer to real life than previously. This ultimately founded the movements of realism and naturalism. (Globe Theatre 2010)
Cinema
Very early cinema began in the 17th century where they used magic lanterns to make moving pictures. These often reached high levels of sophistication, and they projected images onto clouds of smoke whilst sound effects were made to go alongside it. (Jonathan Walters, Early Cinema Timeline, 2002)
In 1839 Henry Fox Talbot discovered an important advancement in photography production, and invented the first paper negatives, and also around this time glass slides were made possible through using better technology to print them. Obviously as you get towards present day, the invention of plastic was very important for the world of cinema because negatives and slides can now be printed in mass, for a very cheap price. (John Barnes 1998)
With further advancements, cinema developed from a carnival novelty to one of the most important mediums for communications, entertainment and mass media in the present day.
Looking at my present day research it became apparent that there has been a ‘revival’ of antique cinema from the 1950’s onwards. It is currently talked about a great deal on the media – and especially talked about by people on social media websites, and actresses such as Audrey Hepburn are widely heralded as idols and fashion inspirations. This shows that the history of cinema is still actually popular today and films such as Breakfast at Tiffany’s are still very popular and sold in shops to this day.
After the 1950’s cinema became really big business, and film viewing theatres called ‘cinemas’ sprang up across Great Britain and America. This also sparked the beginnings of the current celebrity culture. (A Robinson 2003) With the advancement of mass media, and popular media, these actors and actresses started living in the public’s eye and because celebrities. Today though, there are many, many celebrities of varying fame, and it has moved on from early cinema. Media is available to everyone 24 hours every day, so people are very aware of current famous actors and actresses and show a massive interest in their lives. (IMDb 2011)
Cinema
Very early cinema began in the 17th century where they used magic lanterns to make moving pictures. These often reached high levels of sophistication, and they projected images onto clouds of smoke whilst sound effects were made to go alongside it. (Jonathan Walters, Early Cinema Timeline, 2002)
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| A replica of a magic lantern for sale at £26.99 (Grand Illusions Ltd 2011) |
In 1839 Henry Fox Talbot discovered an important advancement in photography production, and invented the first paper negatives, and also around this time glass slides were made possible through using better technology to print them. Obviously as you get towards present day, the invention of plastic was very important for the world of cinema because negatives and slides can now be printed in mass, for a very cheap price. (John Barnes 1998)
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| A Calotype Paper Negative (Alan Green 2008) |
With further advancements, cinema developed from a carnival novelty to one of the most important mediums for communications, entertainment and mass media in the present day.
Looking at my present day research it became apparent that there has been a ‘revival’ of antique cinema from the 1950’s onwards. It is currently talked about a great deal on the media – and especially talked about by people on social media websites, and actresses such as Audrey Hepburn are widely heralded as idols and fashion inspirations. This shows that the history of cinema is still actually popular today and films such as Breakfast at Tiffany’s are still very popular and sold in shops to this day.
The original trailer for Breakfast at Tiffany's - This is still popular now, but not as popular as it was in the past.
After the 1950’s cinema became really big business, and film viewing theatres called ‘cinemas’ sprang up across Great Britain and America. This also sparked the beginnings of the current celebrity culture. (A Robinson 2003) With the advancement of mass media, and popular media, these actors and actresses started living in the public’s eye and because celebrities. Today though, there are many, many celebrities of varying fame, and it has moved on from early cinema. Media is available to everyone 24 hours every day, so people are very aware of current famous actors and actresses and show a massive interest in their lives. (IMDb 2011)
This is just showing that the cinema of the past has grown in popularity over the years and is still enjoyed today. It has also inspired many other more modern works. The cinema of old has revolutionised the way media is today, and it lets us see many different things. Cinema itself is incredibly popular with modern day films making millions of pounds – this would not really be possible if it did not have so much relevant history.
Makeup
In the late 1800’s, the only people to wear makeup really were stage performers and prostitutes. Compared to today’s standards – where nearly every woman wears makeup and it is widely available, before 1850 there was a very limited selection available to people who wanted to use it. (Amy Finley The History OF Theatre Makeup 2006-2011)
“Stage Makeup items available before 1850:
White face powder
India ink for drawing lines
Rouge (very bright red or pink)
Misc. artist’s pigment base powders, (like Bole Armenia aka “burnt umber” for a reddish brown tone)
Burnt cork (for dark brown/black)
Lamp-black (for mascara)
Burnt paper (for grey shadows)
Spirit gum
Wool crepe hair (for both facial hair and false noses)” Taken from the blog – Seduced by History, Paty Jager, Wednesday June24th, 2009
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| Complete and unused white female Max Factor theatrical "student" kit in original box - 1940 (Tara Maginnis 2010) |
Looking back over the research I have come to the conclusion that the subject of makeup is very relevant to the present day, and it has been a continued subject of interest over the years. The research also shows that attitudes towards makeup have changed, from it being the domain of actors and prostitutes – to now being worn by just about every woman. It has also sparked a huge grown in the cosmetics and beauty industry, just to illustrate how popular it has become.
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| How to 'Make Up' (Haresfoot and Rouge 1877) This was a book for sale in 1877 as a guide for applying makeup for actors. |
Much earlier than this, in the Greek and Roman times makeup was not really necessary. The actors wore masks, which allowed them to portray anything they wanted, such as expressions, gender, age, or something that looks entirely different to the actor. (Edward Argent 2011)
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| 1st Century BC theatre mask (Jastrow 2005) |
Rudimentary makeup techniques played with light and shadow on the actors faces to change the shape and appearance of the faces of the actors, and this pretty much changed the way makeup was applied, especially with the invention of electrical lighting which bathed the actors with light that they previously had no access to. (Patty Jager 2009)
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| Cover of a brochure for Theatrical Stage Lighting (Kliegl Bros 1922) |
Lighting had a massive effect on stage makeup, and people had to change the way they applied it. Such examples of the effects include; Pink makes cool colours grey, and makes yellow become orange, fire red ruins makeup, green greys all flesh tones, purple affects makeup like violet lighting and light blue lowers the intensity of base colours.
Puppetry
Puppetry is actually a very ancient form, being invented long before theatre as we know it today. It is believed to have originated 30,000 years BC and it has always been used as a storytelling medium. (Puppets Now 2000/2011)
I think that puppetry is very relevant to the way that present day media has developed. It means that there has been a rise in popularity in this subject, and many famous television shows have been made using puppets.
The introduction to 'The Sooty Show' This was a popular television show made with puppets.
One every interesting topic is the Chinese Shadow Theatre, which used puppets – originally called “pi-xing xi”, translated as “theatre of the lantern shadows”. It is believed to have been invented over 2000 years ago for Wu, the Emperor of the Han Dynasty, and was inspired by the shadows cast by the toys children were playing with. They were first made from paper, and later on, the hides of donkey and oxen. For a long time this type of puppetry was heavily tied into politics and very influential because it was universally understood – as there were no words, therefore no language barriers. (Travel China Guide 1998 - 2011)
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| Chinese Shadow Theatre (Théâtre des Ombres 1996) |
The idea of the shadow puppets is really interesting – but over the years it didn’t really increase in popularity. In this present day and more recent history, there are not many examples of it within popular media, so it might not be fully relevant to my research.
Shadow puppetry has continued to be used in the near past, such as on Bear in the Big Blue House (1997), The Year of Living Dangerously (1983), Once Upon a Time in America (1984), and Karate Kid (2010) There is also a Centre for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta, Georgia, which has a collection of antique shadow puppets.
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Once Upon a Time in America Dvd (1984) |
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| Bear in the Big Blue House (Jim Henson 1997 - 2007) |
More recently there have been several popular children’s TV shows, such as Sooty and Thunderbirds that have proved incredibly popular and these have both used puppets to create the programs.
The television shows such as Captain Scarlet and Thunderbirds have enjoyed enormous popularity, and even though they are now several years old, people still enjoy watching them. They were also shown many times in the media, and had toys, spin off shows and movies made about them. In a way these have paved the way for new techniques – but at the time they were very popular with people.
Marionettes
There is evidence that Marionettes were used in Egypt from as early as 2000BC because articulated, string controlled puppets have been found in tombs dating back to that time. Traditionally they were used to portray rituals and ceremonies of importance in ancient times. (Ma Theng / Nyan Tun 2005)
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| 'Queen of the Night' from Mozart's 'The Magic Flute' (Under Creative Commons) |
More recently than this, Italian Renaissance is considered by the majority of people to be the birthplace of Marionette theatre as we know it – mostly due to the influence of Roman puppetry. The Christian church used them to perform religious plays, and they were also used in villages and small towns to tell the people the news that had been going on in the cities – almost like a precursor to the news channels today that we have running 24 hours per day.
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| Re-enactment of an Italian Renaissance Marionette show at the Renaissance Festival (Randy McAtee) |
From this research, marionette dolls in Renaissance Italy have inspired a great many things. They might not be popular in the present day – but in their time they were very popular and sometimes the only entertainment people had access too. I think that they possibly inspired the idea of broadcasting news and events to people – thus maybe being the original form of popular media.
It was thought about this time that Marionettes began to be used in the theatre, and even Shakespeare used them in some of his plays instead of actors.
In modern history, marionettes have been used in television and movies, such as Pinocchio (1940), Howdy Doody (1947), and Andy Pandy (1952). This does however show that marionette style theatre has been reduced to a children’s entertainment, giving it a more limited audience. This may show how entertainment has changed throughout the years.
A selection of scenes from Pinocchio (Disney 1940) Even though it is animated, it is still about a Marionette doll so it shows that there was some interest in the subject at the time.
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This does however show that marionette style theatre has been reduced to a children’s entertainment, giving it a more limited audience. This may show how entertainment has changed throughout the years.
Conclusion
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