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In 1575, Queen Elizabeth I stood behind Kenilworth Castle’s large bay windows to observe the entertainment underway in the courtyard.

“It was a spectacular moment. Elizabeth was able to watch the show while also situated in a window above the courtyard for all to see,” recounted Allen Loomis, who recently earned his doctorate in English from ��������.

Ubiquitous today, transparent glass was then a brand-new innovation, restricted to the palatial estates of those adjacent to the monarchy. The queen’s appearance in front of a clear window kicked off a craze in “lantern houses,” window scenes in theater and more — a “domestic theatricality” that has become the focus of Loomis’ research.

So far, his doctoral dissertation on “Transparent Glass Windows and Domestic Theatricality in Early Modern England” has resulted in two journal articles: “Elizabeth Tudor’s Domestic Theatricality in the Windows of Kenilworth Castle” in a recent edition of Explorations in Renaissance Culture, and “Crystal Casements and Shattered Panes: Staging Window Glass in Early Modern England,” which will appear in a forthcoming issue of Studies in Philology.

Along the way, Loomis received the to complete research in England, as well as funding from the Harpur Dean’s Graduate Investment Initiative. He has also discussed his research on the podcast .

Now that he’s finished his doctorate, Loomis is working on a book proposal and teaching Shakespeare and early modern literature courses at �������� and Siena College. He hopes to eventually land a tenure-track position at a university and is currently applying for a summer fellowship at the Folger Shakespeare Library.

At the heart of his research is a desire to shed new light on the materials around us that we often take for granted. Transparent glass surrounds us, from office building windows to windshields, smartphone screens and so much more.

“In early modern England, transparent glass windows — something we can’t imagine not having now — were very new and verged on the magical,” he said.

Seer and seen

A native of Saratoga Springs, N.Y., Loomis spent a decade in Chicago, where he worked for United Airlines. After earning his bachelor’s and then master’s in English at Loyola University, he decided to pursue his PhD at ��������.

During his first year at ��������, he was reading a survey of plays and noticed a pattern: a striking amount of action occurred in or around windows. Why?

“While I am a literary scholar, I am also interdisciplinary and spend a lot of time thinking about domestic architecture and advancements in window glass technology and window design,” he said.

Windows were common in houses of the period, although they were typically narrow and filled with something other than glass, such as a wooden lattice or oiled paper. Only the wealthiest households had large windows filled with glass.

Prior to the mid-16th century, that glass was typically stained or translucent; windows weren’t yet intended to provide a view inside or outside of the home, but to let in the light. After the Reformation and the ensuing dissolution of England’s monasteries, stained glass fell out of fashion and the domestic glass industry collapsed.

The situation turned around in 1567, when immigrant glassmakers from France brought new technologies that permitted the creation of more transparent glass.

“This development revitalized the industry and sparked a frenzy for lavish spending on large windows filled with transparent glass in the homes of the aristocracy,” Loomis said.

The apartments that Robert Dudley built for the queen’s 1575 visit to Kenilworth Castle constituted an early “lantern house.” These houses were built on hilltops, with expensive glass windows that allowed the householder to view the countryside while simultaneously displaying the house’s interior to outsiders.

The visit kicked off a trend among the uber-wealthy, who built their own lantern houses in the hopes of gaining the queen’s favor. During a research trip to England funded by the Corning Museum of Glass, Loomis had the opportunity to view the remains of Queen Elizabeth’s apartments at Kenilworth Castle as well as Hardwick Hall, a surviving lantern house.

Elizabeth knew well the importance of visibility — and how it goes both ways. For example, the Sieve Portrait depicts the queen in front of a window, as well as a globe inscribed with the words “I see everything, and much is lacking.”

“The Queen wanted to be seen by her subjects, and she wanted them to know that she could also see all of them,” Loomis said.