Theatre often took place in courtyards, but permanent theatres became common and started opening during this time. Permanent theatres became popular when plays were banned in London as a measure against the plague. Permanent theatres were designed to hold lots of people.
Being that there was no artificial lighting, plays had to take place during daylight hours. Plays did not use much for setting or use many props. In fact, it was common to have nothing more than a chair and a table for a Shakespeare play, if those were even on the stage. In order to make up for the lack of set, the characters would wear colorful costumes. These colors also helped the audience identify the ranks of the characters.
Some of the well-known playwrights from the era of Renaissance theatre are William Shakespeare, Ben Jonson, Christopher Marlowe, and Thomas Dekker. Even though may of the plays from this time have been lost, it is stil known that many of the playwrights wrote in verse. Popular genres of the era were history, tragedy, and comedy. Sometimes older genres such as pastorals and morality plays influenced the plays being produced.
Puritans thought that the entertainment theatre provided was sinful. Renaissance theatre ended because of the Puritan movement when an act was passed that banned theatre for an unspecified amount of temporary time.
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