A stage on which William Shakespeare would have performed has been discovered. The BBC reports this, explaining that at the St George’s Guildhall theater in King’s Lynn, Norfolk, the oldest functioning theater in the United Kingdom and dating back to 1445, during recent renovation works, floorboards were found under the existing auditorium which date back to the 15th century.
Theater records show that Shakespeare performed there in 1592 or 1593. At the time, acting companies left the capital when London’s theaters were closed due to the plague. “We have the borough’s account book from 1592 to 1593, which records that the council at the time paid Shakespeare’s company to perform on site,” explains Tim FitzHigham, the Guildhall’s creative director. The floorboards were discovered last month during a renovation project at the Guildhall. They had been covered for 75 years after a replacement floor was installed in the theatre. Just over five centimeters below the modern floor are what are believed to be the boards trodden by the Bard, each 30cm long and 15cm deep, forming the walking surface of the old stage which dates back to a period between 1417 and 1430, the time of the construction of the theatre. According to British experts, this would be an extremely important discovery because not only is it the largest 15th century wooden floor in the country, but it would also be the only surviving stage on which Shakespeare performed. There has been much academic debate over the years over whether Shakespeare actually acted in King’s Lynn, but experts believe the discovery is significant. Tiffany Stern, professor of Shakespeare and modern theater at the University of Birmingham, told the BBC: “The evidence that Shakespeare performed there needs to be pieced together, but it is quite strong.” The debate will continue. On Thursday, the discovery will be discussed at a conference in King’s Lynn theater entitled ‘Revealing the Secrets of the Guildhall’.