This is a study of the early modern drama that was written and staged in England between 1576 and 1642. It is determinedly a study all about making connections. Focusing on the commercial theatre context which arose from the opening of a series of purpose-built playhouses in London from 1567 onwards, and the particular acting practices, companies and residences that they brought into being with them, it nevertheless connects that particular theatrical world with the wider performance cultures of the court, of noble households and estates, and of civic communities, including that of the burgeoning capital city of London itself. Presented in part through chapters organised by genre, the book is punctuated by a series of focused case studies on topics ranging from repertoire to performance style, from political event to the physical body of the actor, and from plays in print to the space of the playhouse. These case studies enable the reader to zoom in on particular moments, attitudes and aesthetic practices that contribute to the overall story of the remarkable body of drama that was produced at this time. The study as a whole, however, asks readers to think about drama not through individual playwrights or plays but through repertoires and company practices, placing those playwrights and their plays into a highly collaborative and competitive environment of cultural production.

Individual chapters are deliberately not organised chronologically, or by strict periodisation, although the relevance of terms like ‘Elizabethan’, ‘Jacobean’ and ‘Caroline’ when thinking about early modern drama will be explored in the Introduction. The swerve away from a neat linear history is performed in order to allow the rich lines of connection and synergy between those plays staged in the 1590s and those performed in the 1630s and 1640s to emerge in fresh and unrestricted ways. Historical context remains important, nevertheless, to the meanings being argued for and the activities being described. This context is accounted for both in terms of defining the broader aspects of the labels we might place on plays dating in composition and first performance from certain decades and identifying key aspects of certain reigns and moments – work done in the Introduction – and in explorations of specific cultural and political contexts in individual case studies. A supporting Chronology is provided at the back of this volume in order to assist readers in understanding and applying that historical context when looking at individual plays.