Overview
Eva Griffith's book fills a major gap concerning the world of
Shakespearean drama. It tells the previously untold story of the
Servants of Queen Anna of Denmark, a group of players parallel to
Shakespeare's King's Men, and their London playhouse, The Red Bull.
Built in vibrant Clerkenwell, The Red Bull lay within the northern
suburbs of Jacobean London, with prostitution to the west and the Revels
Office to the east. Griffith sets the playhouse in the historical
context of the Seckford and Bedingfeld families and their connections to
the site. Utilising a wealth of primary evidence including maps, plans
and archival texts, she analyses the court patronage of figures such as
Sir Robert Sidney, Queen Anna's chamberlain, alongside the company's
members, function and repertoire. Plays performed included those by
Webster, Dekker and Heywood - entertainments characterised by spectacle,
battle sequence and courtroom drama, alongside London humour and song.