Shakespeare and the Admiral's Men
Reading across Repertories on the London Stage, 1594–1600

This book examines the two-way influence between Shakespeare and his company's main competitors in the 1590s, the Admiral's Men.

Tom Rutter (Author)

9781107077430, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 16 January 2017

236 pages
23.5 x 15.8 x 1.8 cm, 0.46 kg

'Rutter displays deep knowledge of the plays he discusses and of the scholarship that precedes him. His book, lucid and economical in style, introduces new perspectives on the plays and lays out numerous intertextual connections. The book will have a long shelf life as required reading for students and scholars of Renaissance drama …' Donna B. Hamilton, Early Theatre

For most of the 1590s, the Admiral's Men were the main competitors of Shakespeare's company in the London theatres. Not only did they stage old plays by dramatists such as Christopher Marlowe and Thomas Kyd: their playwrights invented the genres of humours comedy (with An Humorous Day's Mirth) and city comedy (with Englishmen for My Money), while other new plays such as A Knack to Know an Honest Man and The Downfall of Robert, Earl of Huntingdon were important influences on Shakespeare. This is the first book to read the Admiral's repertory against Shakespeare's plays of the 1590s, showing both how Shakespeare drew on their innovations and how his plays influenced Admiral's dramatists in turn. Shedding new light on well-known plays and offering detailed analysis of less familiar ones, it offers a fresh perspective on the dramatic culture of the 1590s.

Acknowledgements
Note on dating
Introduction
1. 'How might we make a famous comedie': from A Knack to Know an Honest Man to The Merchant of Venice
2 'Hobgoblins abroad': from Doctor Faustus to A Midsummer Night's Dream
3. 'I speak of Africa and golden joys': Henry IV and the Stukeley plays
4. 'Sundrie variable and pleasing humors': new comedies, 1597–8
5. 'Nor pure religion by their lips profaned': Oldcastle, Robin Hood, and As You Like It
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Shakespeare studies & criticism [DSGS], Shakespeare plays [DDS], Plays, playscripts [DD], Literature & literary studies [D], Theatre studies [AN]