Two 18th century theatres bearing the name Goodman's Fields Theatre were located on

Alie Street Alie Street is a 400 metre long street located in Aldgate, East London. It links Mansell Street with Commercial Road. For much of its history, the western part was known as Great Alie Street, with the eastern part called Little Alie Street. Histo ...

Whitechapel Whitechapel is a district in East London and the future administrative centre of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a part of the East End of London, east of Charing Cross. Part of the historic county of Middlesex, the area formed ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. The first opened on 31 October 1727 in a small shop by Thomas Odell, deputy Licenser of Plays. The first play performed was

George Farquhar George Farquhar (1677The explanation for the dual birth year appears in Louis A. Strauss, ed., A Discourse Upon Comedy, The Recruiting Officer, and The Beaux’ Stratagem by George Farquhar' (Boston: D.C. Heath & Co., 1914), p. v. Strauss notes ...

's ''

The Recruiting Officer ''The Recruiting Officer'' is a 1706 play by the Irish writer George Farquhar, which follows the social and sexual exploits of two officers, the womanising Plume and the cowardly Brazen, in the town of Shrewsbury (the town where Farquhar himse ...

''.

Henry Fielding Henry Fielding (22 April 1707 – 8 October 1754) was an English novelist, irony writer, and dramatist known for earthy humour and satire. His comic novel '' Tom Jones'' is still widely appreciated. He and Samuel Richardson are seen as founders ...

's second play ''The Temple Beau'' premièred here on 26 January 1730. Upon retirement, Odell passed the management on to

Henry Giffard Henry Giffard (1694–1772) was a British stage actor and theatre manager. Early life Although there is some uncertainty about his early years, he is described as being the son of William Giffard. Born in London – in Lincoln's Inn Fields by s ...

, after a sermon was preached against the theatre at St Botolph's,

Aldgate Aldgate () was a gate in the former defensive wall around the City of London. It gives its name to Aldgate High Street, the first stretch of the A11 road, which included the site of the former gate. The area of Aldgate, the most common use of ...

.''Whitechapel'' from ''Old and New London: A Narrative of Its History, Its People and Its Places by Walter Thornbury'' (1881)
accessed 6 March 2007 Giffard operated the theatre until 1732. After he left, the theatre was used for a variety of acrobatic performances. Giffard constructed a new theatre down the street designed by

Edward Shepherd Edward Shepherd (died 1747) was a prominent London-based English architect and developer in the Georgian period. Architectural work Shepherd worked on the following projects, among others: * Cannons, a house for James Brydges, 1st Duke of ...

who also designed the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...

. The theatre opened with ''

Henry IV, Part I ''Henry IV, Part 1'' (often written as ''1 Henry IV'') is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written no later than 1597. The play dramatises part of the reign of King Henry IV of England, beginning with the Battle of H ...

'', 2 October 1732 that included actors Thomas Walker, Richard Yates and Henry Woodward. A dispute at the Drury Lane Theatre bought the actress

Sarah Thurmond Sarah Thurmond or Sarah Lewis ( – 1762) was a British actress. Life Sarah Lewis was born in Epsom although the date is unknown. Her first appearances were at Drury Lane and Lincoln's Inn Fields at the end of 1711 in Greenwich where she met J ...

and her husband to the theatre. With the passing of the

Licensing Act of 1737 The Licensing Act of 1737 is a defunct Act of Parliament in the Kingdom of Great Britain, and a pivotal moment in theatrical history. Its purpose was to control and censor what was being said about the British government through theatre. The act ...

, the theatre was forced to close. Giffard rented

Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre Lisle's Tennis Court was a building off Portugal Street in Lincoln's Inn Fields in London. Originally built as a real tennis court, it was used as a playhouse during two periods, 1661–1674 and 1695–1705. During the early period, ...

briefly and then, with various political machinations, was able to reopen Goodman's Fields in 1740. ''

The Winter's Tale ''The Winter's Tale'' is a play by William Shakespeare originally published in the First Folio of 1623. Although it was grouped among the comedies, many modern editors have relabelled the play as one of Shakespeare's late romances. Some criti ...

'' was produced there in 1741 for the first time in over a century. The same year

David Garrick David Garrick (19 February 1717 – 20 January 1779) was an English actor, playwright, theatre manager and producer who influenced nearly all aspects of European theatrical practice throughout the 18th century, and was a pupil and friend of Sa ...

made his successful début as ''

Richard III Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Battl ...

''. He also staged plays of his own including the 1741

farce Farce is a comedy that seeks to entertain an audience through situations that are highly exaggerated, extravagant, ridiculous, absurd, and improbable. Farce is also characterized by heavy use of physical humor; the use of deliberate absurdity o ...

The Lying Valet ''The Lying Valet'' is a British play by David Garrick. A farce, it was first performed at the Goodman's Fields Theatre Two 18th century theatres bearing the name Goodman's Fields Theatre were located on Alie Street, Whitechapel, London. T ...

''. The theatre closed 27 May 1742 and did not re-open. It was pulled down in 1746, and a further theatre built on the site, this briefly showed drama before it was converted to a warehouse and burned down in 1809. During its heyday, the poet

Gray Grey (more common in British English) or gray (more common in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally that it is "without color", because it can be composed o ...

noted in a letter to a friend, that "there are a dozen dukes of a night at Goodman's Fields sometimes". The ''Oxford Companion to the Theatre'' notes that there may have been an earlier theatre named Goodman's Fields Theatre in the area around 1703.

References

location
*Hartnoll, Phyllis, ed. The Oxford Companion to the Theatre. 4th edition. London:Oxford UP, 1983. p. 342. {{Authority control Former theatres in London Theatres completed in 1727 Theatres completed in 1732 1742 disestablishments in England Former buildings and structures in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets Buildings and structures demolished in 1746