9 December, 1596 - The Blind Beggar of Alexandria

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

Henslowe writes: y^e 10 of desembȝ 1596 ... R at the beager ... x^s

In modern English: [9^th] December, 1596 ... Received at The Beggar ... 10 shillings

Beggars in Alexandria; an undated photograph
from Brooklyn Museum's Lantern Slide Collection

Today, the Admiral's Men revived The Blind Beggar of Alexandria, a comedy by George Chapman about a master of disguise. You can read more about this play in the entry for 12 February.

During the past entire week, the Admiral's Men have performed only two plays: the new Vortigern and the once-popular Blind Beggar. It is the beggar who is coming out worst, as today's audience is tiny compared to the more impressive ones for the new play. The company needs to move on from has-been plays like this one. 

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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