(Above) The team from Museum of London Archaeology get to work
Work to build a £3 million, 21st century version of Shakespeare's first theatre on the Shoreditch yard where it stood more than 400 years ago has begun with a major dig by experts from the Museum of London.
A core five-man team from Museum of London Archaeology has moved onto the site where audiences watched the bard’s plays at the end of the 16th century. They will be broadcasting a series of video diaries and news bulletins from excavations expected to uncover more ancient artefacts, having found mugs crowds drunk from and remains from the theatre in previous excavations.
The venue was simply called The Theatre when Shakespeare performed there. Image © Museum of London
"There was nothing quite like these playhouses anywhere," said Taryn Nixon, Managing Director of MLA. "They became a vital part of society at every level.
"It's extraordinary to be working here where Shakespeare would have performed, and where early plays like Romeo and Juliette would have premiered."
A 16th century pottery fragment was unearthed in an earlier excavation of the site. Image © Museum of London
A 19th century warehouse and a concrete floor which stood on the grounds have already been demolished and removed, revealing signs of glass-making and 18th and 19th century buildings from the surrounding Holywell Priory.
London’s only full time amateur dramatic group, the Tower Theatre Company, launched the campaign to raise funding for the new building in March 2009, planned as a modern venue for small-scale arts and theatre in the Hackney area.
Follow the action on the excavation's website.
