The architecture of the stage

The sketch is reproduced by kind permission of
the University Library, Utrecht: Ms. 842, f.132r.

Early scholarly reconstructions of the Globe Theatre tended to assume that it looked like a normal Tudor building, with heavy half-timbering.

There is indeed some evidence that the construction used standard Tudor timbers, since the Globe was constructed from the same timber that was used for the Theatre-- dismantled in the night and taken to the new site because the lease on the land had expired.

However, the important sketch of the Swan, part of which is reproduced here, shows clearly that the major pillars have been made to look like classical columns.

• A modern reconstruction of an Elizabethan stage from forty years ago.
• The architecture of the New Globe in London.