The remains of the Curtain Theater were first discovered in Shoreditch in 2011, about three meters (9.0 feet) below the surface of the development. The theater was in use from 1577 until 1625, when plays were moved to The Globe Theater.
But the Curtain Theater has the distinction of having the longest history of use for any of the Shakespearean theaters in all of London. The exact location of the theater in Shoreditch was unknown, although it took its name from its location on Curtain Street, reports Discovery Seeker.
The playhouse was discovered behind a pub when researchers from the Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA) were doing an exploratory excavation in the area. Its original location was said to be only a few hundred yards from London’s first playhouse, The Theater, which opened in 1576.
The Curtain Theater is closely connected to William Shakespeare because was the place his company, the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, called home, at least until The Globe opened.
There were also timbered galleries on the mid and upper layers of the building where people who could afford it might go and a graveled courtyard for those with less to spend.
Interestingly, the Curtain was intentionally built as a rectangular playhouse, and more astounding, the stage itself was much longer than originally thought. It also had a flat front, and this perplexed the researchers. And unlike the Globe, there was no backstage area where actors could change costumes.
The stage is 14 meters (46 feet) long, and five meters (16 feet) wide, “purposely built to totally immerse the public in the entertainment, according to a statement from MOLA.
More recently, after three more months of excavation, a passageway below the stage has been found, with doors at either end suggests the stage itself was built over the passageway. The passageway allowed movement underneath the stage so actors could pass from one side of the stage to the other without being seen.
“The question is now whether Shakespeare and other playwrights were writing plays specifically for this kind of stage —which would have required a completely different style of interaction compared to a thrust stage with the audience on three sides,” said senior archaeologist Heather Knight, reports Archaeology.
Research also revealed that the Curtain was one of the earliest Elizabethan playhouses where people paid money to see a performance. Fragments of ceramic money boxes used to collect entry fees from play-goers have been found.
Here’s a little piece of trivia for readers: after the ceramic money boxes were filled, they were taken to a separate room called the “box office,” where the money boxes were smashed and the money counted. The term “box office” is still in use today.
Other finds include glass beads and buttons, most likely from costumes, as well as drinking vessels and clay pipes, probably belonging to theater-goers.
The Curtain’s remains will be on permanent display, along with a collection of unearthed artifacts as part of a cultural and visitor center at the heart of a major redevelopment project called, quite appropriately, “The Stage.”
