Groundling (Noun)
Meaning
In Elizabethan theater: a playgoer in the cheap standing section.
Classification
Nouns denoting people.
Examples
- The groundling in the pit was jeering at the actor's over-the-top portrayal of the king.
- Because of his limited budget, the young apprentice was relegated to watching the play from the groundling section.
- Marlowe's Tamburlaine the Great premiered to a raucous crowd of groundlings at The Theatre in Shoreditch.
- Theatre critics of the time often complained that the groundlings' heckling and shouting dominated the atmosphere during performances.
- Despite the noise and chaos, Shakespeare's company relied on the enthusiasm of the groundlings to help fund their productions.