performances other quarters had often to be found. These were ordinarily in an inn;[1] occasionally in the church itself or the churchyard.[2] Great Yarmouth had its specially provided 'game house'; a theatre contemplated at York in 1608-9 was to have its own company, as 'a means to restrayne the frequent comminge of other stage players', but the scheme was never actually carried out.[3]
To some extent the evidence of the accounts can be eked out by that of other records throwing a more direct light upon the responsibilities assumed by the civic authorities in regard to plays. Singularly interesting is the register of the Mayor's Court at Norwich, in which are recorded the attendances of players on their arrival in the town to submit their credentials and obtain leave for their performances.[4] The patent companies produced their letters patent in original or in exemplification, in addition to which the Court seems to have expected some instrument of deputation, if none of the men actually
- ↑ 'At the New Ynn' (Abingdon, 1559); 'Certen playars, playinge uppon ropes at the Crosse Keys' (Leicester, 1590). Worcester's men played at Norwich in 1583 'in their hoste his hows', and the Queen's men in the same year at the Red Lion. A Norwich order of 1601 forbade plays at the White Horse in Tombland. A Salisbury order of 1624 laid down that all plays should in future be at the George in High Street. Where the house of a named citizen is given as the play-place, one may perhaps generally infer an inn; but in 1573 Leicester's men seem to have played at Bristol 'in the Mayors house', and at Plymouth in 1559-60 'players of London' performed 'in the vycarage'.
- ↑ 'In the churche' (Doncaster, 1574); 'in the colledge churche yarde' (Gloucester, 1589-90); 'in the churche lofte' (Marlow, 1608-9); 'in the churche' (Plymouth, 1559-60, 1565-6, 1573-4); 'in XXe churche' (Norwich, 1589-90); 'the Chappell nere the Newhall' (Norwich, 1616); 'because they should not play in the church' (Syston, 1602). On the religious opposition to this practice, cf. Mediaeval Stage, ii. 191.
- ↑ M. Sellers, in E. H. R. xii. 446, from Corporation Minute Book, xxxiii, f. 187.
- ↑ Murray, ii. 335.
twice a day yf occasion soe require, cannot sit there in such decent and convenient order as becometh, and dyvers other inconvenyences do thereupon ensue, It is therefore ordered by generall consent that from henceforth no leaue shall bee graunted to any Stage players or interlude players or to any other person or persons resortinge to this towne to act shewe or represent any manner of interludes or playes or any other sportes or pastymes whatsoeuer in the said hall' (Southampton, 1623); 'Forasmuch as we finde the glass windows in the Council Chamber to be much broken, and the city thereby suffereth much damage, ordered that no plaies nor players be suffered to have any use thereof' (Worcester, 1627). An earlier Worcester order had limited players to 'the lower end onlie' of the guild-hall. At Chester in 1615 the exclusion of players from the hall was openly based on 'the common brute & scandall' due to 'convertinge the same beinge appointed & ordained for the judicial hearinge & determininge of criminall offences, & for the solempne meetinge & concourse of this howse into a stage for plaiers & a receptacle for idle persons'.
