17 June, 1594 - Belin Dun

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

Henslowe writes: y^e 15 of June 1594 ... R at bellendon ... iij^ll and iiij^s

In modern English: 17^th June, 1594 ... Received at Belin Dun ... £3 and 4 shillings.

A highwayman portrayed in Richard

Head's The English Rogue (1666)

Today, a new era has begun for Henslowe! The Admiral's Men have returned to the Rose playhouse on the south bank of the Thames, following their brief and mysterious stint at the theatre in Newington. And they're about to begin a lengthy period of stability, with few of the hiatuses and disruptions that we've seen over the previous years.

The Admiral's Men celebrated their return today with a performance of Belin Dun, a lost play about the notorious robber who terrorized the Dunstable area during the reign of King Henry I; you can read more about this play in the entry for 10 June.

The Admiral's Men had premiered Belin Dun at Newington last week. It did not appear to have special interest there, but its performance today at the Rose was a great success, drawing a huge audience. Presumably Belin Dun was a new play to most of the spectators at the Rose, who would not have trekked out to Newington to see it last week. But whether they were excited to see Belin Dun, or just to see any theatre at the Rose at all after its lengthy closures, we do not know.

What's next?

Henslowe's dates are confusing for this period. I am going to assume that tomorrow's entry is either missing or the players did not perform for some reason. So, Henslowe's Diary ... as a Blog! will return on 19 June. 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!