Lord Chamberlain's Men facts for kids
The Lord Chamberlain's Men was a famous acting group in England. They were the main company for which William Shakespeare wrote most of his plays. A great actor named Richard Burbage played many of the main characters, like Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth. This company became one of the most important acting groups in London by 1603. Later, King James I became their special supporter.
The company started in 1594 during the time of Queen Elizabeth I. Their first supporter was Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon, who was the Lord Chamberlain (in charge of court entertainment). After he passed away in 1596, his son, George Carey, 2nd Baron Hunsdon, took over. For a short time, the company was called Lord Hunsdon's Men. When George Carey also became Lord Chamberlain in 1597, they went back to their original name. In 1603, when King James became king, he became their patron. The company was then renamed the King's Men. They had the special right to perform all of Shakespeare's plays.
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Where Did They Perform?
From 1594, the actors performed at a theatre called The Theatre in a place called Shoreditch. But they had problems with their landlord. So, in 1597, they moved to the nearby Curtain Theatre.
On a night in December 1598, the Burbage brothers (who owned The Theatre) took it apart. They moved the wooden beams across the river to Southwark. There, they used the wood to build their new theatre, the famous Globe Theatre. The Globe opened in 1599. Sadly, it burned down in a fire on June 29, 1613. The Globe was rebuilt by June 1614 and stayed open until 1642. The company also traveled around Britain to perform. They even visited France and Belgium.
Today, there is a modern version of the original Globe Theatre called "Shakespeare's Globe". It opened in 1997 very close to where the first one stood.
Who Were the Actors?
The success of the Lord Chamberlain's Men was largely due to the Burbage family. James Burbage was the person who brought the company together and managed it until he died in 1597. His sons, Richard Burbage and Cuthbert, were also part of the company. Richard was an actor, but Cuthbert was not. This family connection links the Lord Chamberlain's Men to the very beginning of professional theatre in London.
The company had a core group of about eight "sharers". These were the main actors who shared the profits and debts. They also had other actors who were "hired men" for smaller roles. Plus, there were "boy players" who played female characters, as women were not allowed to act on stage.
One of the most famous actors in the 1590s was William Kempe. He was the company's clown and played funny roles. He is known for playing Peter in Romeo and Juliet, Dogberry in Much Ado About Nothing, and Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream. Kempe left the company around 1601.
Augustine Phillips was another important actor who stayed with the group until he died in 1605.
Two younger actors, Henry Condell and John Heminges, are famous today for collecting and publishing Shakespeare's plays in a book called the First Folio in 1623. They were young when they joined in 1594 and stayed with the company for many years.
Of course, William Shakespeare himself was a very important member. He was a sharer and at first acted in plays. But soon, his writing became even more important. He continued to act at least until 1603.
Richard Burbage was the lead actor of the Lord Chamberlain's Men. He played many of Shakespeare's most famous characters, including Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth. He became one of the most famous actors of his time.
When William Kempe left, he was replaced by Robert Armin. Armin was a different kind of comedian. He was smaller and more clever. This change allowed Shakespeare to create new types of funny characters. Armin is known for playing Feste in Twelfth Night, Touchstone in As You Like It, and the Fool in King Lear.
What Plays Did They Perform?
Shakespeare's plays made up most of the company's performances. In their first year, they might have performed some of Shakespeare's older plays like Henry VI, Part 2 and Henry VI, Part 3, and Titus Andronicus. A Midsummer Night's Dream might have been the first play Shakespeare wrote especially for the new company. After that, he quickly wrote many more, including Romeo and Juliet, Love's Labours Lost, The Merchant of Venice, and his history plays about kings.
The company also performed plays by other writers. One of the earliest non-Shakespearean plays they performed was Ben Jonson's Every Man in His Humour in 1598. They also staged its follow-up, Every Man Out of His Humour, the next year.
The Lord Chamberlain's Men quickly became very popular. They performed for the Queen at court many times. In 1597, all theatres were temporarily closed because of a play called The Isle of Dogs. During this time, some of the company toured other towns. The character of Falstaff in Shakespeare's plays was very popular. However, his original name (Oldcastle) upset Lord Cobham, whose family had a real person named Oldcastle.
In the late 1500s, the company continued to perform Shakespeare's new plays. These included Julius Caesar and Henry V, which might have been the first plays performed at the Globe Theatre. They also performed Hamlet. Among other plays, they performed A Warning for Fair Women and Thomas Lord Cromwell.
In 1601, the company was involved in a less serious conflict called the War of the Theatres. They put on Thomas Dekker's play Satiromastix, which made fun of Ben Jonson. This play seemed to end the argument. Later, in 1603, they performed Jonson's Sejanus. They also performed The London Prodigal, The Merry Devil of Edmonton, and The Fair Maid of Bristow.
Who Went to the Theatre?
Going to the theatre was very popular in London in the late 1500s and early 1600s. London had about 200,000 people at the time. More than 15,000 people went to plays every week! Londoners also enjoyed other activities like cock-fighting and bear-baiting. The theatres were often in lively parts of London, surrounded by other entertainment.
As the Lord Chamberlain's Men became more popular, they attracted more and more theatre-goers. Because of this, they had to perform six different plays every week! This was very hard on the actors. They had to memorize lines from many different plays and had very little time to practice.
As the company grew, they started performing in bigger places. In 1599, they began playing at the outdoor Globe Theatre, which could hold 3,000 people. In 1609, they also started performing at the indoor Blackfriars Theatre, which held about 600 people. The cheapest ticket at the Blackfriars was sixpence, which was six times more expensive than the Globe. Better seats cost even more. Having both indoor and outdoor theatres allowed the company to make money all year round.
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