Cockpit Theatre

Most likely a round building with a peaked roof, about 40 feet (12 m) in diameter, it was erected under Henry VIII, c. 1530-32, as part of a gaming complex.

Records indicate a major restoration in 1581-82 and renovations in 1589-90, 1602-3, and 1608-9 (the latter under the supervision of John Best, "cockmaster" to Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, King James I's eldest son and heir).

[4] In March 1617, rioting apprentices attempted to destroy the playhouse, probably out of anger that their favorite plays had been removed from the Red Bull outdoor amphitheater, which charged only one penny for admission, to this more expensive (six-penny) venue.

Beeston expanded the original small building; the construction work prompted complaints by neighbors, which left traces in the legal records of the time.

Beeston intended the Cockpit to serve as an indoor complement to the Red Bull, the outdoor theatre then home to his acting troupe, Queen Anne's Men.

A winter venue was needed to compete with the Blackfriars Theatre in the possession of their rival troupe, the King's Men.

Wickham attributes the success more to the theatre's location and comfort and to the flair of its manager, Beeston, than to the quality of its performers.

[11] In the last years of the English Interregnum, under the common conceit that music was not acting, Davenant was permitted to present two licensed operas in the Cockpit: The Cruelty of the Spaniards in Peru in 1658 and Sir Francis Drake in 1659.

The Cockpit was unable to compete with this relatively grand new theatre and was further hamstrung since it was shut out of the monopoly on "legitimate drama" granted to the two patent companies.