28 May, 1595 - The Second Part of Hercules

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

Henslowe writes: y^e 28 of maye 1595 ... R at 2 pte of herculas ... iij^ll ij^s

In modern English: 28^th May, 1595 ... Received at Second Part of Hercules ... £3 and 2 shillings.

The Embarkation of the Argonauts by Lorenzo
Costa (16th century). Hercules is on the prow
of the Argo.

After a very popular revival of Hercules Part One yesterday, the company now follows it with the almost new Part Two, continuing the story of the Greek mythological strongman. This part may have included Hercules' contribution to the quest for the Golden Fleece. You can read more about The Second Part of Hercules in the entry for 23rd May.

The company is experimenting with performing the Hercules plays as a pair over two days, just as they have been doing with the older Tamburlaine plays. The experiment seems to have paid off: this was another very successful performance that filled the playhouse.

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?

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