Shakespeare's first theatre discovered in London

The remains of the Curtain theatre, where Shakespeare's 'Henry V' and 'Romeo and Juliet' may have been first performed, have been discovered in East London.

Parts of the Curtain theatre being excavated in Shoreditch, east London, by the Museum of London Archaeology (Mola) as part of regeneration works Photo: PA

12:39PM BST 06 Jun 2012

Remains of the once lost Curtain theatre, which preceded the Globe as the venue which showcased Shakespeare's work, have been found in East London.

It's likely that the theatre was the home to some of the first performances of Romeo and Juliet and Henry V.

The theatre was dismantled in the 17th century and its exact location was lost to historians soon after. Now, the Museum of London Archaeology (MoLA) has found sections of the theatre in Shoreditch, East London.

The MoLA has found the original site on Hewett Street, a few hundred yards from another theatre found by the museum in 2008 called The Theatre. Both this and the Curtain are believed to be the earliest purpose-built theatres in London.

Part of the gravelled yard, where audiences stood and watched the plays, and the foundation walls have been uncovered after 500 years.

Experts conducting the archaeological dig are confident of finding more as the site is cleared. The MoLA excavators said the site remains very well preserved.

Legend goes that the famous actor-manager James Burbage dismantled The Theatre overnight after a dispute with the landlord and set about building the Globe theatre across the river.

Until the Globe was built, Burbage and his troupe used the Curtain theatre to perform in from 1597 for two years. This is the period in which Henry V and Romeo and Juliet were first staged.

The lines from Shakespeare's Henry V 'Can this cock-Pit hold within this Woodden O', may have first been spoken in the Curtain theatre, which was created in a wooden O shape, much like the Globe.

Dominic Dromgoole, artistic director of the Globe theatre, said: "I love the fact that we are excavating London, and slowly clearing away the miserable piles of Victoriana and Empire, and revealing the wild, anarchic and joyous London which is lurking beneath."

The site is owned by Plough Yard Developments, which plan to feature the remains as part of a new office, retail and residential space.

Extraído de The Telegraph

A ÚLTIMA HORA

A Última Hora (2007) será passado na DCSH-SV, dia 6, às 08:30, sala 1. A sessão foi organizada pelo Núcleo de Investigação em Energias Renováveis (NER) e terá a duração de 95 minutos. A comunidade académica está convidada.


Ver Cartaz Aqui.

Sinopse

Causadas pela própria humanidade, enchentes, furacões e uma série de tragédias assolam o planeta cotidianamente. O documentário mostra como a Terra chegou nesse ponto: de que forma o ecossistema tem sido destruído e, principalmente, o que é possível fazer para reverter este quadro. Entrevistas com mais de 50 renomados cientistas, pensadores e líderes ajudam a esclarecer estas importantes questões e a indicar as alternativas ainda possíveis.

Trailer

Mentes distraídas são capazes de reter mais informação

A equipa de investigação reuniu um grupo de voluntários a quem foi pedido para realizar tarefas simples

2012-05-31

Há pessoas que até se distraem com uma mosca; no entanto, isso não é sinónimo de falta de concentração ou de capacidades. Segundo o estudo publicado recentemente na Psychological Science, pessoas distraídas são mais criativas, porque acumulam mais informação.

Os investigadores Daniel Levinson e Richard Davidson, da Universidade de Wisconsin-Madison, EUA e Jonathan Smallwood, do Instituto Max Planck (Suíça) chegaram à conclusão que existe uma relação entre uma memória mais operacional e a tendência do cérebro em dispersar-se quando realiza tarefas diárias.

Para o estudo, a equipa de investigação reuniu um grupo de voluntários a quem foi pedido que realizasse tarefas simples, como premir um botão ao aparecer determinada letra num ecrã ou ao ritmo de cada inspiração de ar. E mediante as actividades em que se dispersavam mais, os investigadores mediam a memória operacional, através da memorização de séries de letras enquanto resolviam problemas matemáticos. Quem se dispersou mais durante os testes obteve melhores resultados na avaliação de memória. A explicação reside no facto de uma área extra do cérebro ser usada quando fazemos contas, usando dois números, mas não pode escrevê-la. Esta capacidade está ligada a medidores de inteligência, tal como o QI.

Segundo Jonathan Smallwood "os resultados sugerem que as actividades rotineiras, como andar de autocarro ou tomar banho é, provavelmente, são realizadas através da memória operacional". E Daniel Levinson explica que "funciona como se a atenção estivesse tão absorvida por outros pensamentos que não sobrasse espaço para recordar o que pretendiam fazer".

Extraído de Ciência Hoje

My hero: Homer by Madeline Miller

'From the very first sentence - "Sing, O goddess, the destructive rage of Achilles" - I fell completely in love'

• Madeline Miller
• guardian.co.uk, Friday 1 June 2012 22.55 BST

Interior of a kylix depicting Achilles tending the wounded Patrocles, circa 500BC. Photograph: Staatliche Museen, Berlin/The Bridgeman Art Library

I first encountered Homer when I was five years old and my mother would read the Iliad and the Greek myths to me as bedtime stories. From the very first sentence – "Sing, O goddess, the destructive rage of Achilles …" – I fell completely in love. I was enthralled by the larger-than-life gods, the epic adventures and most of all by the noble and deeply flawed heroes.

When I got to high school, I was fortunate enough to have a Latin teacher who offered to teach me ancient Greek. Being able to read Homer's words in the original was a life-changing experience. I had always loved his stories and characters, but in the original I was struck by the beauty of his language. It was so poetic and powerful and expansive. No matter how many times I studied it, I was always surprised and delighted by something new.

I continued to study classics through college, and came to realise that I wanted to participate in the stories not just as a reader but as a teller. I returned to the same characters that had always fascinated me – Achilles and his beloved, Patroclus. And once again Homer inspired and surprised me. His rich and fully imagined world generously gave me the scope for my own.

We still don't know if Homer was one person or many people, whether he was truly the blind bard of legend or someone more prosaic. What we do know is that when these poems were written they were intended not just for an elite audience, but for everyone. Homer's eye is all-encompassing; every facet of human life is welcome. His insight into human nature, into such universal experiences as love, loss and war, remain relevant today. Whoever created these gorgeous poems, I owe them a huge debt of gratitude. Almost 3,000 years later they are as fresh as they ever were.

• The Song of Achilles (Bloomsbury), Madeline Miller's first novel, has been awarded the 2012 Orange prize.

Published by  The Guardian