Rogues and vagabonds, idle, pimping, 'spunging' slaves and lechers. 'Honest hypocrites' and 'the motley representatives of human nature.' That's how actors were described back in the day. It wasn't until around 150 years ago that the profession of acting was considered even remotely respectable.
Exits and Entrances is the author's personal and often biased account of how theatre and the people who worked in it have evolved since the golden age of Elizabethan times, when Shakespeare and his cronies introduced what we now call modern theatre.
Theatre people come from all sorts of backgrounds, respectable and not so much. What binds them together is a remarkable mixture of courage, resilience, persistence, personality and adaptability, all of which ensures this ancient art form has survived and thrived for half a millennium.
This book, written by an ex rogue, is a homage to all of them.