Bell Sauvage Inn
When looking at the Bell Sauvage (Savage) Inn, there is not a lot of information from theatre historians as it has primarily been considered an inn. But starting from at least 1575, the Bell Sauvage was operating as a courtyard theatre, one of four within the city walls of London itself (Bell Savage Inn). It was located on Ludgate Hill, just down the street from St. Paul’s Cathedral, on a large swath of land described as “consisting of about 40 rooms, with good cellarage and stabling for 100 horses” (Berry, 124).
While the Bell Sauvage Inn may have not been the first early modern playhouse in London, it could be argued based upon construction date, it certainly was the last in the city. The Bell Sauvage’s earliest written records come from 1420, though it certainly may have existed before this and the building was torn down in 1873 (Berry, 122), making it the longest standing early modern theatrical space after the great fire in 1666. Unfortunately, no records of theatrical performances exist in for the courtyard space until 1575, giving the Red Lion the title of first early modern playhouse in London officially by most theatre historians.
The Bell Sauvage though gets other great firsts. The end of the Rebellion against Elizabeth I was squashed in the courtyard, performances during the theatre closures from dancing horses, the Queen’s Men played within the city walls on this stage (Berry), and on the 10th of October in 1684 the London Gazette stated that a rhinoceros was hosted in the courtyard where you could pay 1 shilling to see it and 2 shillings to ride it (“A London Rhinoceros”). The space itself was also host to scandal as two murders happened in the space: one in 1562 and another in 1568 during a fencing match (Berry, 125).
When it comes to the theatre itself as a space it was an interesting place to play. As it was also a tavern and inn, the travelling troupes that came through had to negotiate through the vitner (or inn-keep) to set up their show time and profit split (Caswell). The Inn owner for the majority of the early modern era interestingly enough was actually a woman, Margaret Craythorne who was a widower and managed the financials while renting the space out to couples who ran the space (Berry 130). The layout of the space consisted of the yard itself, rooms were private boxes, and balconies were upper and lower circles. A stage was erected on short term trestles. There were many complaints from the fencing guild about the height of these trestles saying that is was higher than other stages of the time period and people were likely to break their necks as they were to be stabbed (Berry, 125).
As for what was performed at the Bell Sauvage, not a lot of information exists, but the fencing guild has the best records so it is known that fencing displays were performed often until 1589 (Berry, 124). There are also three specific dates from three specific reviews of what was performed and absolutely nothing else from the early modern age: 1579 - The two proose Brookes played at the Bell Sauvage, 1588 - Richard Tarlton sang his last theame there, and 1633 - The History of Faustus played (Berry, 140). Even while there was a ban on theatre in 1594 within the city walls, there was a Court Order of 1600 to supress Courtyard performances within City Walls, likely due to performances at places like the Bell Sauvage and Cross Keys Inn (Berry, 133).
While a lot of information is lacking on the Bell Sauvage, the existence of courtyard theatres is incredibly interesting and important the study of theatre and early modern theatre history. It is the connection between the pageant shows of medieval Europe to the current touring shows of today and choosing to forget these spaces is something that is devasting to understanding of the history of theater practitioners. Theatre historians also lose such amazing facts like the London Rhinoceros and knowing that there was a man who danced with his horse.
Works Cited
“A London Rhinoceros.” London Gazette, 10 Oct. 1684, bl.uk/learning/timeline/item10468.html.
Bell Savage Inn, http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/bell-savage-inn.htm.
Berry, Herbert. “The Bell Savage Inn and Playhouse in London.” Medieval & Renaissance Drama in England, vol. 19, 2006, pp. 121–143. JSTOR, https://www-jstor-org.proxy.marybaldwin.edu/stable/24322832?seq=19#metadata_info_tab_contents.
Cassell, John. The Story of the House of Cassell. Cassell, 1922.
“The Bell Savage Theatre (Inn-Yard).” The Bell Savage Theatre and Picture, http://www.william-shakespeare.info/the-belle-savage-inn-theatre-picture.htm.