In the early part of the reign of Charles I. the Red Bull was of the theatres then allowed in London, and seems to have been much frequented; but chiefly by the lower order of people. This we learn, as well as the nature of its performances, from a passage in a poem addressed to Mr. D'Avenant (afterwards William), on his play of "The Just Italian," by a gentleman of the court:[*]
Now noyse prevailes, and he is tax'd for drowth
Of wit, that with the cry, spends not his mouth.—
When they admire, nod, shake the head, 't must be
A scene of myrth, a double comedy.
But thy strong fancies (raptures of the braine,
Drest in poeticke flames), they entertaine
As a bold, impious reach; for they'll still slight
All that exceeds RED BULL and COCKPIT flight:—
These are the men in crowded heape that throng
To that adulterate stage, where not a tongue
Of th' untun'd kennell can a line repeat
Of serious sense:
Whilst the true brood of actors, that alone
Keepe naturall unstrain'd Action in her throne,
Behold their benches bare, though they rehearse
The terser Beaumonts or great Johnson's verse.
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Prynne, in his coarse satire, mentions the following playhouses as flourishing in his time: "The Cockpit, and Drury Lane; Blackfriars Playhouse, and Duke Hwmfrie's; the Red Bull, and Turnbull Street; the Globe, and Bank-side;" which he elegantly denominates, "Brothel-houses."—Histrio Mastix, p. 391.
On the suspension of plays, at the commencement of the civil wars, and during the whole of the usurpation, the
Red Bull appears to have been the only licensed theatre. The Drama was strictly prohibited, but a mixed species of amusement, consisting of feats of activity, and select scenes from plays, under the name of "Drolls," was allowed to be here shown to the public. These scenes were afterwards collected and published by Francis Kirkman, who had himself been an actor at the Red Bull,Kirkman, whose portrait is prefixed to the above collection, and who is noticed by Granger (Vol. iv., p. 58, Note), was afterwards a bookseller, and in 1661 resided at the John Fletcher's Head, on the back side of St. Clement's, where he chiefly dealt in old plays. He appears likewise to have been an author and translator. In the catalogue of Mr. Steevens's books, sold 1800, are the titles of the two following works by him: "The Sixt Booke of the famous and renowned History of Amadis de Gaule, translated by Francis Kirkman, 4to. Printed by Jane Bele. 1652;" and, "The History of Prince Erastus, and those famous Philosophers, called The Seven Wise Masters of Rome, translated by Francis Kirkman, with plates. 8vo. Lond. 1674." with the following curious title: "The Wits; or Sport upon Sport: in selected Pieces of Drollery, digested into Scenes by way of Dialogue. Together with Variety of Humours of several Nations, fitted for the Pleasure and Content of all Persons, either in Court, City, Country, or Camp. The like never before published." 8vo., 1672.
In the preface to the second part of this scarce book, the compiler details some particulars of the Red Bull, and the state of theatricals at that period, which are highly amusing:
"When the publique theatres were shut up, and the actors forbidden to present us with any of their tragedies, because we had enough of that in earnest; and comedies, because therein the vices of the age were too lively and smartly represented; then all that we could divert ourselves with were these humours and pieces of plays, which passing under the name of a merry conceited fellow, called Bottom the Weaver, Simpleton the Smith, John Swabber, or some such title, were allowed us, and that by stealth too, and under pretence of rope-dancing, or the like; and these being all that was permitted us, great was the confluence of the auditors; and these small things were as profitable, and as great getpennies to the actors, as any of our late famed plays. I have seen the RED BULL playhouse, which was a large one, so full, that as many went back for want of room, as had entered; and as meanly as you may now think of these drols, they were then acted by the best comedians, then and now in being; and, I may say, by some that then exceeded all now living; by name: the incomparable Robert Cox, who was not only a principal actor, but also the contriver and author of most of these farces. How have I heard him cryed up for his John Swabber, and Simpleton the Smith? in which latter, he being to appear with a large piece of bread and butter, I have frequently known several of the female spectators and auditors to long for some of it: and once that well-known natural Jack Adams of Clarkenwell, seeing him with bread and butter on the stage, and knowing him, cryed out, 'Buz, buz, give me some, give me some!' to the great pleasure of the audience.The Jack Adams here mentioned, was a character well-known at the time, and whose nativity is calculated in Partridge's Almanack for the year 1809, with the following notice: "I shall now give my readers the nativity of Jack Adams, a native of Clerkenwell parish, London; who was born an idiot, or so great a natural, that the parish not only maintained him, but allowed a nurse to attend him to preserve him from harm. This Jack Adams was born the 3rd day of December, at 11 o'clock at night, 1625; and was so great a natural, as to be obliged to wear long coats, besides other marks or tokens of stupidity." And so naturally did he act the Smith's part, that being at a fair in a country town, and that farce being presented, the only master smith of the town came to him, saying, 'Well, although your father speaks so ill of you, yet when the fair is done, if you will come and work with me, I will give you twelve pence a week more than I give any other journey man.' Thus was he taken for a smith bred, that was indeed as much of any trade.To explain the above anecdote, and give a specimen of these Drolls, take the following from the book itself. Title: "The Conceited Humours of Simpleton the Smith."
Argument needless, It being a thorow Farce, and very well known.
Simpleton the Old, Simpleton the Young, Doll, a Wench, &c.
Enter Old SIMPLETON.
Old Simp. If ever dog was weary of his day, then have I cause to be weary of my life. I am a blacksmith by my trade; and although I say it, I have been counted a good workman too; but I could never yet forge or hammer out means enough to satisfy the insatiate gut of my son, Simpleton. He hath a stomach may well defye a gyant, or the great eater of Kent: for no sooner is his head out of the ale, but his nose is in the pantry. But I have thought of a course, which he shall either take in hand, or graze with Hob my horse. Here, sirrah, Simpleton, where are you?
Y. Simp. Here, here, father.
O. Simp. Where, where, sirrah!
Y. Simp. At the cupboard, Father; at the cupboard.
O. Simp. I thought as much. But come you hither, sirrah, or I shall make your ear sing prick-song for you.
Enter Young SIMPLETON with a GREAT PIECE OF BREAD AND BUTTER!
Y. Simp. 'Tis a miserable condition, that a man cannot eat a little bit for his afternoon's lunchin, but he must be disturbed in the best of his stomach.
O. Simp. A bit! dost thou call it? O'my conscience, this devouring rascal, old as I am, would eat me if he found me in the cupboard.
Y. Simp. I do not think there is such a genteel smith in the town, that hath such an old niggardly coxcomb. He knows I have no better a stomach than a young green-sickness girl, and yet he grutches me every bit I eat.
O. Simp. Leave off your muttering, and lend me an ear a while.
The old man then proposes a marriage to his son with Doll, whom the latter serenades with a viol under her chamber-window. She, disturbed by his noise, empties the urinal on his head, &c., and finally is run away with by a young gentleman.—Such was the trash which then pleased!
"Thus were these compositions liked and approved by all; and they were the fittest for the actors to represent, there being little costs in cloaths, which often were in great danger to be seized by the then souldiers, who, as the poet says, Enter the Red Coat, Exit Hat and Cloak, was very true, not only in the audience, but the actors too were commonly, not only stripped, but many times imprisoned, till they paid such ransom as the souldiers would impose upon them; so that it was hazardous to act anything that required any good cloaths; instead of which painted cloaths many times served the turn to represent rich habits. Indeed, poetry and painting are of kin, being the effects of fancy; and one oftentimes helps the other, as in our ingenious and rich scenes, which show to the eye what the actor represents to the ear. And this painting puts me in mind of a piece I once saw in a country inn, where was, with the best skill of the workman, represented King Pharaoh, with Moses and Aaron, and some others: to explain which figures was added this piece of poetry:
Here Pharaoh, with his goggle eyes, does stare on
The high priest Moses, with the prophet Aaron.
Why, what a rascal
Was he that would not let the people go to
Eat the phascal.
"The painting was every wayes as defective and lame as the poetry; for, I believe, he who pictured King Pharaoh, had never seen a king in his life, for all the majesty he was represented with was goggle eyes, that his picture might be answerable to the verse. But enough of this story; which pleasing me, I must confess I have forced in here, hoping it will please you too, and then I have my ends."
Monarchy and the stage being restored together, the remnants of the six scattered playhouses which had subsisted in Charles the First's time, were formed into one company, and acted for the first time at the Red Bull playhouse.
Here, and at Gibbons's Tennis Court, Clare Market (where they built a temporary theatre), they continued acting in all 1660, 1661, 1662, and 1663, when Killigrew got his patent.
From this period it is probable that the Red Bull became disused as a place of amusement, as no further mention is made of it, amongst the theatres of the metropolis, which were soon afterwards removed to politer parts of the town.
The view of the inside of the Red Bull, accompanying this account, forms the frontispiece to Kirkman's book, from which we have so largely quoted. The print has no name under it, but was evidently intended to represent that theatre, as the place where these drolls were principally, and for a time exclusively, acted. And it is more expressly designated, by the publishers having assembled on the stage all the chief performers of that house
in the leading characters of each droll; and amongst them Cox, the hero, author, and probably stage manager of that concern.The characters shown in the plate are Sir John Falstaff and the Hostess, Clause, French Dancing Master, Changeling, Simpleton, and the Clown. These, no doubt, are meant, at least as far as regards dress, as portraits of the leading actors in the principal drolls performed at the Red Bull, and subsequently printed by Kirkman: though we only know the name of one of them, viz., Robert Cox, who is represented as playing Simpleton. The names of the pieces to which these characters belonged, were, "The Bouncing Knight," from Shakspeare's Merry Wives of Windsor; "The Lame Commonwealth," altered from the Beggar's Bush; "Monsieur, the French Dancing Master," a piece compressed from The Varieties; Simpleton, the Smith, a piece so named; and "The Bubble," from Green's Tu Quoque.See Brome's Cunning Lovers, p. 19. The Clown uses the expression, "Tu quoque." Query, Whether it was not peculiar to Clowns? —A remark by Mr. Douce.
"The most part of these pieces," the publisher tells us, "were written by such persons as were known to be the ablest artists that ever this nation produced, by name, Shakespear, Fletcher, Johnson, Shirley, and others. And these collections," he adds, "are the very souls of their writings, if the witty parts thereof may be so termed. And the other small pieces composed by several authors, are such as have been of great fame in this last age."
Of the actors here it is not easy to make a catalogue. Cox and Kirkman have been noticed. The celebrated
Tarlton is also said to have performed at this house, which he might have done from its vicinity to the CURTAIN at Holliwell, of which we know he was a member.
Thomas Jordan was an actor belonging to the company at the Red Bull. He flourished in the reign of Charles the First, and was one of the few players and poets who lived to see the restoration of Charles the Second. On the death of John Tatham, he succeeded him as city poet, or pageant-writer to the Lord Mayor, and regularly composed the pageants from the year 1671 to 1684. He was succeeded by Taubman.
