Reconstructing Shakespeare’s Globe around the Planet
This panel brings together theory and praxis, focusing on several cases in which the early modern Globe theatre has been reconstructed in different locations around the world: Shakespeare’s Globe in London, UK; the Container Globe in Detroit, Michigan; the Pop-Up Globe in Auckland, New Zealand and elsewhere in Australasia, as well as the Panasonic Globe Theatre in Tokyo and Rome’s Gigi Proietti Globe Theatre Silvano Toti. Surveys of the Container Globe and Pop-Up Globe will be delivered by their founders.
Shakespeare’s Globe on London’s Southbank opened in 1997. Initially disparaged by some scholars for the extent of its perceived “inauthenticity,” the venue has since become an iconic part of London’s contemporary theatrical scene in its own right: a vibrant aesthetic space which continues to attract flocks of tourists as well as vast bodies of scholarship and press attention. The Container Globe in Detroit is currently situated on the grounds of the former Herman Kiefer Hospital in the Midtown neighbourhood of the city, constructed from repurposed shipping containers. Conceived by Angus Vail, a business manager in the music industry, the Container Globe hosts a variety of events and aims to recreate the intimacy and raucousness of early modern theatregoing at a site of low-cost and mobile materials. The Pop-up Globe was a project and production company founded by theatre director Dr. Miles Gregory. Between 2015 and 2020, five temporary reconstructions of the Globe hosted over 700,000 people at theatrical performances in four cities across New Zealand and Australia. The panel will also reflect on two prominent sites outside the Anglosphere: the Panasonic Globe Theatre in Tokyo, which opened in 1988, and Rome’s Gigi Proietti Globe Theatre Silvano Toti, which opened in 2003. These spaces invite different kinds of responses to, and assessments of, dynamic acts of linguistic and cultural translation as well as the broader “Planetary Shakespeares” conference theme.
Thinking with sociologist Henri Lefebvre’s celebrated proposition that “(social) space is a (social) product” and theatre studies scholar and practitioner Dorita Hannah’s idea of “performative architecture,” the panel locates this range of projects within the multitudinous social and material networks in which they were produced. The panel asks, broadly: Why rebuild the Globe theatre? What features are necessary for a rebuilt Globe theatre to be considered a version of the Globe theatre at all? What can reconstructed Globe theatres offer present-day communities in vastly different geographical, temporal, linguistic, and social contexts?
A further aim is to gesture towards the “gathering” work that they each perform, deploying the term from archaeologist Ian Hodder. The panel as a whole suggests that part of the value of the structures under consideration here lies in this gathering work they perform: gatherings of people, of places, of materials, of timeframes, and of ideas. This in turn provokes much broader reflections about the kind of imaginative and material work that is done when buildings from other times and places are reconceived in new cityscapes, landscapes, and social-environmental contexts.
Alex Baines
“These Unworthy Scaffolds”: Rebuilding Shakespeare around the World
This paper serves as an introduction to the key themes of the panel. It offers a brief survey of reimagined Globes around the world, both speculative projects and material rebuilds, and seeks to theorise their importance. The paper includes especial consideration of Shakespeare’s Globe on London’s Southbank, opened in 1997, the Panasonic Globe Theatre in Tokyo, opened in 1988, and Rome’s Gigi Proietti Globe Theatre Silvano Toti, opened in 2003. It examines the venues’ functions beyond theatrical productions and argues for the importance of the “gathering” work that these reconstruction projects perform, borrowing the term from archaeologist Ian Hodder.
Angus Vail
The Container Globe, Detroit, Michigan
The Container Globe, located in Detroit, is a venue based on Shakespeare’s original Globe theatre, constructed from repurposed shipping containers. A multifunctional space, the innovative design and modular construction of the building provides entertainment and education in the arts, design, conservation, and engineering fields, so far hosting Shakespearean productions, student performances, and a techno music festival. The site is fully transportable and can be moved to various locations, including various underserved communities. This paper reflects on the Container Globe’s role as a nexus of cultural and economic activity for the Detroit community.
Dr. Miles Gregory
The Pop-Up Globe, Australasia
The Pop-up Globe, a temporary reconstruction of Shakespeare’s second Globe, functioned as more than a physical space; it was also as a site of significant social-cultural gatherings across Australasia. The performances it hosted sparked dynamic cultural exchanges, with, for instance, Australians cheering for England during Henry V, provoking an interrogation of nationalisms and showcasing the global malleability of Shakespeare’s plays. Examining the Pop-up Globe’s engagement with local theatregoing practices in Auckland, Melbourne, Sydney, and Perth, the paper will consider the transformative role of temporary architecture in shaping and reflecting present-day responses to Shakespeare’s works.