31 May, 1596 - Pythagoras

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

Henslowe writes: y^e 31 of maye whittsen mvnday ... R at pethageres ... iij^ll 

In modern English: 31^st May, Whitsun Monday ... Received at Pythagoras ... 
£3

Pythagoras as portrayed in Raphael's
The School of Athens (1509-11)

It's a holiday! In 1596, May 31 is Whit Monday, the first day of Whitsuntide: a multi-day holiday celebrating the beginning of summer. Many Londoners would have had free time and would have been in a festive mood.  On this special day, the Admiral's Men have revived Pythagoras, their lost play about the Greek philosopher. You can read more about this play in the entry for 16 January

Sure enough, today's performance received splendid box office. Pythagoras has been getting mixed box office in its last few outings, but today a huge crowd has arrived to see the adventures of the Greek philospher. This is the first genuine full house since the Rose re-opened in April, and the players must be thrilled.

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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