24 November, 1595 - The First 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 24 of novmbȝ 1595 ... R at j herculos ... xx^s 

In modern English: 24^th November, 1595 ... Received at 1 Hercules ... 20 shillings

Hercules fighting the Nemean Lion by
Francisco de Zurbarán (1634)

Today, the Admiral's Men revived The First Part of Hercules, which retold some of the legends of the Greek mythological strongman, perhaps focusing on his Twelve Labours. You can read more about this play in the entry for 7 May.

Despite attracting a solid audience last time, the players have waited a month to restage Hercules. Today's box office is much lower though, suggesting that enthusiasm for this once-popular play will be hard to restore.

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!