E X T E N S I O N THE RISE OF THE THEATRE AND ITS DRAMATISTS Writing plays for the theatre and acting was not a very sensible career to have in the 1580 s, but a large number of well-educated young men tried to make a living1 from it, and to find rich patrons to sponsor them. Christopher Marlowe, Thomas Kyd, Robert Greene, Thomas Middleton, Ben Jonson were all rivals of William Shakespeare. When James Burbage built the first theatre, The Theatre , in Shoreditch, North London, in 1576, it was the start of a new and wonderful era for the stage, a little like the beginning of the cinema in the 20th century. Even so, the performance of plays was still often regarded as disreputable 2. They had begun to lose their former religious significance and so many Puritan citizens thought they were the cause of sin as well as crime and spread of disease. However, twelve theatres appeared over the next years. The most famous ones were The Rose , whose manager was Philip Henslowe, The Swan and, of course, The Globe , which belonged to Shakespeare and his acting troupe, The Chamberlain s Men . Their name changed to The King s Men in 1603 when King James became their patron. They performed at the Globe until it burnt down in 1613. 1. make a living: earn money to buy the things you need in life. 2. disreputable: not respectable. 75