The Globe Theater Vs. The Lamb's Players Theater

Mark Rylance and his professional acting troop for Shakespeare's play Richard III put on an extremely accurate rendition of the original theater going experience at The Globe in the 1600's. With the minimal sets and props, the beauty of Shakespeare's masterful way with language was able to shine through and illuminate the characters and their acting abilities. However, when creative sets and props are incorporated into a Shakespeare play, it gives the audience a better idea as to what Shakespeare was attempting to get across to the audience in terms of setting, atmosphere and mood. The Lamb's Theater in Coronado is an amateur theater that often puts on entertaining, and engaging Shakespearean plays, as well as other works. In September 2011, The Lambs Theater put on a producing of A Mid Summer Nights Dream that in many ways was much more interesting to watch than Richard III. The Lambs Theater is an extremely small venue, with a stage about 1/8^th the size of The Globe's stage. However, the way that the scene was set up, with elaborate but thrifty set decorations, gave the audience the feeling of being inside the scene. Whereas, The Globe, took a more traditional approach to the sets and props, which made the overall ambiance seem a bit dull. However, the costumes worn by the players in Richard III were very elaborate and ornate which somewhat made up for its lack of decorations. One of the most intriguing aspects of the costumes was the way the bellies of the male costumes seemed to protrude out and made the actors appear as though their pants were 5 sizes too small. (Notice the man in pink's belly.)

It is apparent that The Globe attempted to adhere to the 16^th century Elizabethan time period as much as possible. However, The Lamb Theater, sticking to a frugal budget, had many of the actors wearing contemporary clothing that they probably brought in themselves. The fairies were wearing colorful tights and flowered headbands that accentuated their femininity.

 

Overall, both productions had certain production aspects that created wonderfully enjoyable productions of Shakespeare's imaginative and articulate work.