This work investigates the evolution of the Royal Shakespeare Company from its origins as a provincial troupe to its status as a premier global theatrical institution. Sally Beauman, a journalist and author with extensive access to company archives, documents the institutional growth, artistic shifts, and administrative challenges faced by the organization over ten decades. The text provides a comprehensive framework for understanding how the company navigated changing cultural landscapes and shifting theatrical standards throughout the twentieth century.

Critics and theater historians frequently cite this volume as a definitive record of the Royal Shakespeare Company's institutional history. Readers often note the academic rigor and depth of the research provided by the author.