John Rhodes (17th century)
Encyclopedia
John Rhodes was a theatrical figure of the early and middle seventeenth century. He rose to a brief prominence in 1660 when the London theatres re-opened at the start of the English Restoration
era.
during the final phase of the development of English Renaissance drama
. On 6 December 1624, Sir Henry Herbert, the Master of the Revels
, listed Rhodes among the "necessary attendants," the hired men of the company, who could not be arrested or "pressed for soldiers" without the consent of the Master of the Revels or the Lord Chamberlain
. Rhodes served as the wardrobe-keeper at the Blackfriars Theatre
. Once the theatres were closed at the start of the English Civil War
in 1642, Rhodes, like fellow King's Men Alexander Gough
and Andrew Pennycuicke
, became a stationer
, or bookseller. Rhodes's shop was at the sign of the Bible, in Charring Cross.
There are also cryptic references to Rhodes being the "keeper" of the Cockpit Theatre
from 1644 on. While the London theatres were formally closed from 1642 to 1660, evidence shows that there were repeated efforts to operate the theatres on a clandestine basis; and for some periods, as in 1647, plays were staged with some regularity. [See: Salisbury Court Theatre
; William Beeston
.] Rhodes may well have been involved in these clandestine theatricals — though the scant evidence of the period prevents any degree of certainty.
, after the death of Oliver Cromwell
, that Rhodes attempted to set himself up as a theatrical manager and producer. In February 1660, when the military dictatorship of General Monck
was still in effect and King Charles II
had not yet returned, Rhodes obtained a license to open a theatre. He leased and refurbished the old Cockpit Theatre, gathered a troupe of young actors, and began to stage plays. His 1660 production of Shakespeare's Pericles, Prince of Tyre
was the first Shakespearean revival of the new era; Thomas Betterton
made his stage debut in the title role. (Charles Gildon
maintained that Betterton had been Rhodes's apprentice when Rhodes was a bookseller.) Edward Kynaston
, famous as the last boy player
taking female roles before the first English actresses appeared, is also thought to have acted for Rhodes in 1660. Rhodes hoped to obtain a royal license for his enterprise — but he was squeezed out in the political machinations of the time; the only royal licensees were Thomas Killigrew
and Sir William Davenant
. Rhodes's already-established company formed the nucleus of Davenant's new Duke's Company
(though Kynaston moved to the rival King's Company
).
— old theatres abandoned by the two licensed companies, which were building new and modern facilities in this period. Rhodes's travelling troupe seems to have passed out of existence after 1662, likely due to continued opposition from the better-established rival organizations. On 17 October 1663, Rhodes received a payment of £20 for a Court performance of Ignoramus, or the Academical Lawyer (Ferdinando Parkhurst's translation of George Ruggle's old Latin play Ignoramus
) at Whitehall Palace on 1 November 1662 — though the cast in that performance seems to have been composed, surprisingly, of Duke's Company members.
Rhodes's attempt to start his theatre company involved him in a series of legal disputes that played out over the coming years. In a 1665 deposition, Rhodes identified himself as being then in his 60s, and at that time a draper in the London parish of St Giles Cripplegate.
English Restoration
The Restoration of the English monarchy began in 1660 when the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II after the Interregnum that followed the Wars of the Three Kingdoms...
era.
Beginning
Rhodes was connected with the King's MenKing's Men (playing company)
The King's Men was the company of actors to which William Shakespeare belonged through most of his career. Formerly known as The Lord Chamberlain's Men during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, it became The King's Men in 1603 when King James ascended the throne and became the company's patron.The...
during the final phase of the development of English Renaissance drama
English Renaissance theatre
English Renaissance theatre, also known as early modern English theatre, refers to the theatre of England, largely based in London, which occurred between the Reformation and the closure of the theatres in 1642...
. On 6 December 1624, Sir Henry Herbert, the Master of the Revels
Master of the Revels
The Master of the Revels was a position within the English, and later the British, royal household heading the "Revels Office" or "Office of the Revels" that originally had responsibilities for overseeing royal festivities, known as revels, and later also became responsible for stage censorship,...
, listed Rhodes among the "necessary attendants," the hired men of the company, who could not be arrested or "pressed for soldiers" without the consent of the Master of the Revels or the Lord Chamberlain
Lord Chamberlain
The Lord Chamberlain or Lord Chamberlain of the Household is one of the chief officers of the Royal Household in the United Kingdom and is to be distinguished from the Lord Great Chamberlain, one of the Great Officers of State....
. Rhodes served as the wardrobe-keeper at the Blackfriars Theatre
Blackfriars Theatre
Blackfriars Theatre was the name of a theatre in the Blackfriars district of the City of London during the Renaissance. The theatre began as a venue for child actors associated with the Queen's chapel choirs; in this function, the theatre hosted some of the most innovative drama of Elizabeth and...
. Once the theatres were closed at the start of the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
in 1642, Rhodes, like fellow King's Men Alexander Gough
King's Men personnel
King's Men personnel were the people who worked with and for the Lord Chamberlain's Men and the King's Men from 1594 to 1642...
and Andrew Pennycuicke
Andrew Pennycuicke
Andrew Pennycuicke was a mid-seventeenth-century actor and publisher; he was responsible for publishing a number of plays of English Renaissance drama.What little is known of Pennycuicke's acting career comes from his own publications...
, became a stationer
Worshipful Company of Stationers and Newspaper Makers
The Worshipful Company of Stationers and Newspaper Makers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The Stationers' Company was founded in 1403; it received a Royal Charter in 1557...
, or bookseller. Rhodes's shop was at the sign of the Bible, in Charring Cross.
There are also cryptic references to Rhodes being the "keeper" of the Cockpit Theatre
Cockpit Theatre
The Cockpit was a theatre in London, operating from 1616 to around 1665. It was the first theatre to be located near Drury Lane. After damage in 1617, it was christened The Phoenix....
from 1644 on. While the London theatres were formally closed from 1642 to 1660, evidence shows that there were repeated efforts to operate the theatres on a clandestine basis; and for some periods, as in 1647, plays were staged with some regularity. [See: Salisbury Court Theatre
Salisbury Court Theatre
The Salisbury Court Theatre was a theatre in 17th-century London. It was located in the neighbourhood of Salisbury Court, which was formerly the London residence of the Bishops of Salisbury. Salibury Court was acquired by Richard Sackville in 1564; when Thomas Sackville was created Earl of Dorset...
; William Beeston
William Beeston
William Beeston was a 17th century actor and theatre manager, the son and successor to the more famous Christopher Beeston.-Early phase:...
.] Rhodes may well have been involved in these clandestine theatricals — though the scant evidence of the period prevents any degree of certainty.
Re-emergence
It was in the final phase of the English InterregnumEnglish Interregnum
The English Interregnum was the period of parliamentary and military rule by the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell under the Commonwealth of England after the English Civil War...
, after the death of Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
, that Rhodes attempted to set himself up as a theatrical manager and producer. In February 1660, when the military dictatorship of General Monck
George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle
George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle, KG was an English soldier and politician and a key figure in the restoration of Charles II.-Early life and career:...
was still in effect and King Charles II
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
had not yet returned, Rhodes obtained a license to open a theatre. He leased and refurbished the old Cockpit Theatre, gathered a troupe of young actors, and began to stage plays. His 1660 production of Shakespeare's Pericles, Prince of Tyre
Pericles, Prince of Tyre
Pericles, Prince of Tyre is a Jacobean play written at least in part by William Shakespeare and included in modern editions of his collected works despite questions over its authorship, as it was not included in the First Folio...
was the first Shakespearean revival of the new era; Thomas Betterton
Thomas Betterton
Thomas Patrick Betterton , English actor, son of an under-cook to King Charles I, was born in London.-Apprentice and actor:...
made his stage debut in the title role. (Charles Gildon
Charles Gildon
Charles Gildon , was an English hack writer who was, by turns, a translator, biographer, essayist, playwright, poet, author of fictional letters, fabulist, short story author, and critic. He provided the source for many lives of Restoration figures, although he appears to have propagated or...
maintained that Betterton had been Rhodes's apprentice when Rhodes was a bookseller.) Edward Kynaston
Edward Kynaston
Edward Kynaston was an English actor, one of the last Restoration "boy players," young male actors who played women's roles.-Career:...
, famous as the last boy player
Boy player
Boy player is a common term for the adolescent males employed by Medieval and English Renaissance playing companies. Some boy players worked for the mainstream companies and performed the female roles, as women did not perform on the English stage in this period...
taking female roles before the first English actresses appeared, is also thought to have acted for Rhodes in 1660. Rhodes hoped to obtain a royal license for his enterprise — but he was squeezed out in the political machinations of the time; the only royal licensees were Thomas Killigrew
Thomas Killigrew
Thomas Killigrew was an English dramatist and theatre manager. He was a witty, dissolute figure at the court of King Charles II of England.-Life and work:...
and Sir William Davenant
William Davenant
Sir William Davenant , also spelled D'Avenant, was an English poet and playwright. Along with Thomas Killigrew, Davenant was one of the rare figures in English Renaissance theatre whose career spanned both the Caroline and Restoration eras and who was active both before and after the English Civil...
. Rhodes's already-established company formed the nucleus of Davenant's new Duke's Company
Duke's Company
The Duke's Company was one of the two theatre companies that were chartered by King Charles II at the start of the English Restoration era, when the London theatres re-opened after their eighteen-year closure during the English Civil War and the Interregnum.The Duke's Company had the patronage of...
(though Kynaston moved to the rival King's Company
King's Company
The King's Company was one of two enterprises granted the rights to mount theatrical productions in London at the start of the English Restoration. It existed from 1660 to 1682.-History:...
).
Decline
The failure of his London enterprise did not mean that Rhodes abandoned drama. For a time he maintained a travelling company of players that toured outside of London, and occasionally visited the capital. In London, Rhodes's troupe performed at the Cockpit and the Red BullRed Bull Theatre
The Red Bull was a playhouse in London during the 17th century. For more than four decades, it entertained audiences drawn primarily from the northern suburbs, developing a reputation for rowdy, often disruptive audiences...
— old theatres abandoned by the two licensed companies, which were building new and modern facilities in this period. Rhodes's travelling troupe seems to have passed out of existence after 1662, likely due to continued opposition from the better-established rival organizations. On 17 October 1663, Rhodes received a payment of £20 for a Court performance of Ignoramus, or the Academical Lawyer (Ferdinando Parkhurst's translation of George Ruggle's old Latin play Ignoramus
Ignoramus (drama)
Ignoramus is a college farce, a 1615 academic play by George Ruggle. Written in Latin , it was arguably the most famous and influential academic play of English Renaissance drama...
) at Whitehall Palace on 1 November 1662 — though the cast in that performance seems to have been composed, surprisingly, of Duke's Company members.
Rhodes's attempt to start his theatre company involved him in a series of legal disputes that played out over the coming years. In a 1665 deposition, Rhodes identified himself as being then in his 60s, and at that time a draper in the London parish of St Giles Cripplegate.