"Elizabethan entertainment"

"Elizabethan entertainment"

During the Elizabethan age, entertainment was an essential part of everyday life.

- Why was entertainment important in the Elizabethan age?

- Entertainment was important to people who lived in the Elizabethan age because it was a time when lives were hard, the mortality rate was high and life expectancy was low.

- Did it only involve the court?

-Court entertainment was regular. There were feasts and banquets accompanied by music and dancing. But the poor people enjoyed entertainment whenever there was something to celebrate, such as weddings, victories and festivals.

- What was the most popular pastime?

- Dancing was an extremely popular pastime. It was considered " a recreation of the mind and an exercise of the body".

- What led to development of dancing?

- Different styles of music and new musical instruments led to the creation of new dances.

- Did Elizabethan dance vary according to social class?

- The court dances enjoyed by royalty, nobility were often imported from Italy, Spain or France. These dance forms varied considerably from the energetic Galliard to the refined and elegant pavane. The lower classes enjoyed the more traditional country dances, such as the jig.

-Was Queen Elizabeth fond of dancing and music?

- Queen Elizabeth encouraged music and dancing. She was a patron of all the arts and encouraged the work of Elizabethan composer and musicians. She had been taught ( insegnato) to play musical instruments as part of her education. Her education also included learning to dance. Dance as a means of daily exercise.

- What were the dances of the lower classes linked to?

-Many of the dances of the Elizabethan lower classes were full of old customs and rituals, such as dancing around the maypole( palo). The Christmas festival included the carole. Modern Christmas carols are derived from this practice.

- Did sport play an important role at that time?

- Tournaments, games, sports and Gambling (giochi) also played an important part in Elizabethan entertainment,

- What were the most popular team sports?

- Team sports such as battledore and shuttlecock, the ancestor of modern badminton, and gameball, a simple but violent football game. It was a dangerous and violent age, and people enjoyed blood sports.

- Were individual sports practised?

-Among the individual sports there were archery and colf, the ancestor of golf, and fencing (scherma). A sword ( spada) was an important part of a nobleman's apparel.

- Did the Elizabethans play tennis?

- Yes, they did. In Elizabethan tennis the ball was often hit against courtyard walls ( muro del cortile) and played with a glove. (guanto). The glove was later replaced by a racquet. The balls were at first made from solid wood, then replaced by leather balls ( guanti in pelle).