5 July, 1597 - That Will Be Shall Be

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

Henslowe writes:  5 |  tt at what wilbe shalbe ... | 00 | 10

In modern English: 5^th [July, 1597]  ... total at What Will Be Shall Be ... 10 shillings 

Today, for the last time on record, the Admiral's Men staged That Will Be Shall Be, an enigmatic lost play about which you can read more in the entry for 30 December, 1596.

The company is continuing with its routine of performing That Will Be Shall Be only about once a month, but this is its last appearance in the Diary. It has received 12 performances in total since its premier at the end of December, but has rarely achieved impressive box office, so this may be goodbye forever.

A female archer tries to take down a war elephant. The man on the
right appears to share the sentiments of this play's title.
From the Smithfield Decretals (c.1340)

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)

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