Wait…Is that Erin and Thatcher on stage? 

Growing up in theatre, I idolized Shakespeare. A poet, actor, and playwright of the most well-known plays in history, I wished to be anything like him. I did school projects about his life and his works, learning as much as I could. The Globe Theater was a central part of his career and I’ve seen so many pictures of it over the years and I’ve always dreamt of seeing it in person. I think being able to say that I’ve seen two shows at the replica of the same theater that Shakespeare worked in would have blown my younger self’s mind. First we saw Mother Courage and Her Children, then A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Globe. Though these shows have very different themes and atmospheres, there are absolutely similarities in the audience experience. Both of these shows relied heavily on audience interaction and participation. The actors in Mother Courage and Midsummer would frequently talk directly to the audience or have one on one interactions with a specific audience member. The Globe’s architecture is built for this: with half the audience standing extremely close to the stage and the offstage entrances making actors walk through the crowd to the stage. Back in Shakespeare’s day, the audience would react loudly to whatever was happening on stage, yelling directly at actors. I think this abundance of actor to audience interaction is to in a way mimic this historical theatre behavior. I’ve seen Midsummer done in the United States in a typical proscenium theater, where the audience just sat in their seats and the actors did not acknowledge them. But Midsummer at the Globe was a much more fun experience and showed me what the theatre environment was like at the time it was written, giving me a more authentic experience. I also loved being able to see my friends onstage interacting with the actors before the show began. Good job guys.