The Elizabethan period did not have rules of theatre etiquette; therefore, Shakespeare's audience was louder, rowdier, and much less stationary than the audience theatre actors enjoy today. While the modern audience respectfully keeps quiet, the Elizabethan theatergoers talked throughout performances. Audience members often milled around conversing with one another, sometimes not even paying attention to what was happening onstage. Many times they would shout at the actors, booing and hissing at any moment during the play. Vendors added to the commotion as they made their way through the audience selling food and drinks. Fights could break out as people argued or men shoved each other to sit next to ladies.  

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Text: Nidia Medina; Ewen Ku, Editor