Shakespeare's Globe Theatre has always been one of my favorite buildings in all of London. It's not the original theatre but I love that it recreates the experience of watching a Shakespearean play in a contemporary setting. Today's rain didn't flatter the building at all however. We began the tour in the Upper Gallery seats. We sat and listened to our guide talk about the Globe's history and the functions of the stage and mechanisms. Then we moved down to the yard and took pictures of the stage. It was all pleasantly nostalgic to be here again. I was sad seeing the theatre empty and grey--the stage looks much more colorful and the theatre is so lively during the summer.
Next we went into the exhibition, which displayed props used in past plays, some costumes, and an interactive area about Old English and modern English line delivery.
I can't honestly talk about every part of this exhibition, as I spent nearly all my time at the printing press model. Like the theatre building, this wasn't an authentic, ancient printing press. It's new, built in the way the first printing press was. It worked like the original, and seeing that was good enough for me. I took Typography last semester, and we learned all about the letterspacing and leading processes. That class was one of my favorite classes I ever took at New Paltz, so naturally I was excited about seeing this machine. The man working this part of the exhibition let me go behind the dividers to touch the individual letter pieces and examine those that interesting ligatures. He also showed me how printmakers back then had to design the page layouts for the printing of the scripts so that the lines were coherent and readable. It really puts into perspective how the computer has made printing books much easier.
Nevertheless, the direct manipulation of the material is something I will always respect and enjoy.
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