30 April, 1596 - The Wise Man of West Chester

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

Henslowe writes: y^e 30 of ap^rell 1596 ... R at wisman ... x^s 

In modern English: 30^th April, 1596 ... Received at Wise Man ... 10 shillings

A man, who might possibly be
wise, carved on the choir
stalls of Chester Cathedral

Today, the Admiral's Men revived The Wise Man of West Chester, a lost play that appears to have been about a wizard in the English city of Chester; you can read more about it in the entry for 3 December, 1594.

The Wise Man of West Chester had done quite well upon its return to the stage ten days ago, but today's audience is very small indeed; despite the blip, it seems this once-popular play will not be returning to its glory days.

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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