by Mary Alice Nichols

After seeing a show entitled "Christmas Cracker" in the Globe Theatre and exploring the exhibition at the Globe, we had the great pleasure of going on a private tour of The Rose Theatre.

The Rose Theatre was an Elizabethan theatre and the fourth public theatre to be built in London in 1587, although at the time it was not in London. It was not built in London because it was illegal to perform within the city, so it stood across the river from city very near to where the Globe stood originally (However The Rose had changed locations by the time the Globe was built.).

The Rose played almost exclusively Christopher Marlowe's plays, with the exception of a few Shakespeare plays (and vice versa with the Globe and Shakespeare's plays). It is a relatively new site, as it was excavated in 1989 because the plot of land where it was located was finally rid of any property. Currently, the outline of the foundation is outlined in rope lighting because it is underneath sand, concrete, and water in order to preserve it until more money is raised to finish the excavation.