Renaissance theater evolved significantly over time, beginning in the late 15th century with the influence of classical texts from Ancient Greece and Rome. Initially, early Renaissance plays were performed in churches and town squares, focusing on morality plays and religious themes. By the early 16th century, secular plays began to emerge, inspired by humanist ideas and emphasizing everyday life and human emotions. As time went on, permanent theaters were constructed, such as the Teatro Olimpico in Italy in 1585 and later the Globe Theatre in England in 1599, creating spaces dedicated to performance. During this period, playwrights like William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe in England, as well as Lope de Vega in Spain, began to write more complex and diverse works. Finally, in the early 17th century, theater had developed into a sophisticated art form, blending poetry, music, and elaborate staging to captivate audiences across Europe.

In the paragraph, the author uses words and phrases as transitions to connect the ideas. The ideas are connected chronologically, and the author uses these transitions as clues so the reader clearly understands how the ideas are connected. Here are several of the words and phrases the author uses:

• Initially

• By the early 16th century

• As time went on

• Later

• During

• Finally

You can see there are a variety of words and phrases that can indicate a time pattern by connecting the ideas chronologically. Can you tell what the author is explaining in this paragraph? The clue is in the first sentence: the evolution of Renaissance theater.