After doing a little research on Elizabethan theatre (theatre of the Renaissance), I decided I wanted to explore what the stages physically looked like. Something I found fascinating was the progression and development of the Elizabethan amphitheater, as we understand it today. I had never heard of Bull and Bear rings before looking into the physical stage, but apparently the design was very similar to the amphitheater, which developed later on. However, in the bull and bear rings, the floors were simply earth, so there could never be human performers, and the walls were required to be made of stone, which was not essential once the venues transitioned into purely theatrical buildings. The natural progression from the bear rings to the Elizabethan amphitheater happened by way of combining inn-yard theatrical spaces with the bear rings. This created a stage venue much more suitable for human performances, not just the “blood sport arenas” that were solely used before. As theatre grew and became extremely popular among Elizabethan society, it was extremely beneficial when the amphitheater emerged because the theatres went from having a capacity of 500 audience members, to upwards of 3000 audience members.
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