What the heck is a “groundling” anyway?

Ok, so I’ve had some questions about where the term “Groundlings” comes from. Well, way back in jolly old Elizabethan England theaters would often be built “in the round” (pictured here) where the covered galleries were filled by wealthy aristocrats who would pay as much as half a crown for their seats.

The theaters also had cheap areas that were filled by what were called the groundlings—the poorer audience members who would only pay one English penny for admission. They would have to stand around the stage in the dirt (or in the mud depending on the weather) to take in the show.

The groundlings also had the reputation of becoming unruly if they lost interest. It’s for them that much of the comedy and lowbrow, bawdy humor was written into the plays.

So why is this called Groundlings Review? Well, it’s because we’re a common group of people who like movies, books, and games and like to talk about them. We’re not journalists. We’re not film students or in the industry in any way. We just like to be entertained and would like to make our opinions known—hopefully in the process we can encourage a few people to see something that might have gone overlooked and help you to stay away from something better left unexperienced.

Hopefully you’ll join us regularly and participate in the commentaries.