Alleyn, Edward

1566

1626

Edward Alleyn, the most famous actor in Elizabethan England, was rivalled only by Richard Burbage. He was with Worcester's Men in 1583, and joined the Admiral's Men at the Rose around 1587. The first to play characters such as Marlowe's Tamburlaine, Doctor Faustus, and The Jew of Malta, and Greene's Orlando Furioso, his performances brought him universal admiration and praise from contemporary authors such as Thomas Nashe and Ben Jonson. In 1592 he married Joan Woodward, the step-daughter of his friend and employer Philip Henslowe who was the owner and manager of the Rose Theatre. Alleyn retired from acting in 1597, and entered into a partnership with Henslowe and they ran the Bear Garden next to tthe Globe, a site for bear-baiting, possibly from as early as 1594 before later constructing the Fortune Theatre north of the city to compete with the Globe around 1600. Alleyn returned to the stage at the Fortune, finally retiring in 1604, when he and Henslowe received a joint patent as Master of the Royal Game of Bears, Bulls and Mastiff Dogs. This business was so lucrative, that in 1605, Alleyn was able to purchase the Manor of Dulwich for £35,000 and began building The College of God's Gift on the estate in 1613, at acost of £10,000; this is now known as Dulwich College. In 1614, Henslowe and Alleyn built the Hope Theatre on the site of the Bear Garden, with an adaptable arena that could function as both theatre and animal-baiting ring, thus maximising profits. At Henslowe's death in 1616, Alleyn inherited most of Henslowe's assets and became a very wealthy man. After his wife's death in 1623, Alleyn married Constance, one of the daughters of John Donne. Alleyn's social and financial status at his death three years later, on Christmas Day, demonstrates the upward mobility an actor could have in Renaissance England.