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Globe of the Great Southwest groundbreaking
On this day in 1958, groundbreaking ceremonies on the campus of Odessa
College were held for the Globe of the Great Southwest. This theater is
a permanent replica of the original Globe Theater built in 1598 on the
Thames River in London, England, for William Shakespeare's acting
company. The idea of the reconstruction of a Shakespearean theater in
Odessa originated in 1948 in Marjorie Morris's senior English class at
Odessa High School. Building the replica was adopted as a project of the
Odessa High School Shakespeare Club; donations were solicited, and a
local architect, J. Ellsworth Powell, drew the blueprints without
remuneration and pledged supervision of the construction. Morris began
to teach at Odessa College in 1951. That year the Odessa College regents
donated land on the campus on which to build the theater, a nonprofit
organization was chartered, and fund-raising began. The Globe was
constructed as money could be raised, largely through Morris's personal
efforts. The main structure was completed in 1961. The octagonal theater
seats 410. Because of its shape and building materials, primarily wood
and plaster, it has excellent acoustics. Adjacent to the theater is a
replica of Shakespeare's wife's home, which houses a Shakespearean
library, archives, a small performance area, and a meeting place.
- Links to Related Handbook of Texas Online Articles
- GLOBE OF THE GREAT SOUTHWEST
- ODESSA COLLEGE
- ODESSA, TX
- Links to other Web sites (will be opened in new browser window)
- The Globe of the Great Southwest
- Other Texas Day by Day Articles for This Date
- Bluebonnet proclaimed state flower (1901)
- Earthquake! (1923)
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