Leicester's Men and their Plays
An Early Elizabethan Playing Company and its Legacy

The first full history of the first great Elizabethan play company, responsible for developing the main features of Shakespearean theatre.

Laurie Johnson (Author)

9781009366496, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 12 October 2023

278 pages
23.5 x 15.8 x 2 cm, 0.55 kg

'This book challenges several previous assumptions in theatre history, but more importantly, it reclaims the role of Leicester's Men as key figures in the development of English theatre. Johnson makes the daily life of the company come alive in front of us, and by complicating our understanding of pre-Shakespearean theatre through a detailed analysis of the history of Leicester's Men in terms of repertory, personnel, touring routes, and performance practices, his book will instantly become essential reading for all scholars of early modern theatre.' Domenico Lovascio, Early Theatre

For three decades, the Earl of Leicester's Men dominated the early Elizabethan stage and helped develop the main features of Shakespearean theatre. Leicester's Men and their Plays is the first book-length study of this foundational playing company, who toured more widely than any other company, performed more often for Queen Elizabeth's court than any other adult troupe, and established the first major playhouses near London. Building on decades of established scholarship, Laurie Johnson makes exciting new discoveries from primary sources and unearths the rich and fascinating life stories of the first Elizabethan players. His findings overturn fundamental assumptions of theatre history and provide new understandings of the players' circumstances and family origins. Through incisive research and engaging storytelling, Johnson shows how the players and their families adapted to life working under one of the most powerful nobles in the volatile Elizabethan court.

1. Starting Points
2. The First Decade (1558–1567)
3. The Second Decade (1567–1577)
4. The Third Decade (1578–1588).

Subject Areas: Literary studies: general [DSB]