9 November, 1594 - Palamon and Arcite

Here's what the Admiral's Men performed at the Rose playhouse on this day, 424 years ago...

Henslowe writes: y^e 9 of novembȝ 1594 ... R at palamon ... xij^s 

In modern English: 9^th November, 1594 ... Received at Palamon ... 12 shillings

Emily watched by the prisoners from their cell
window; from a 15th-century manuscript of
Boccaccio's Teseida

Today, the company revived Palamon and Arcite, an adaptation of Geoffrey Chaucer's "Knight's Tale", in which two noble kinsmen become rivals for the hand of a fair maiden. You can read more about this play in the entry for 18th September.

I don't understand what's going on with Palamon and Arcite. Its box office has been a rollercoaster ride that is currently plummeting into the lower depths after an excellent haul only a week and a half ago. Who knows what'll happen next?

What's next?

There will be no blog entry tomorrow, because 10th November was a Sunday in 1594 and the players did not perform. Henslowe's Diary ... as a Blog! will thus return on 11th November for a week that will include a new play. See you then!

Henslowe links

• Transcript of this page of the Diary (from W.W. Greg's 1904 edition)
• Facsimile of this page of the Diary (from the Henslowe-Alleyn Digitisation Project)

 

Comments?

Did I make a mistake? Do you have a question? Have you anything to add? Please post a comment below!