All his ventures so far proving successful, Chatterton took over the leases for the Princess's Theatre and the Adelphi Theatre; he knew both theatres were running at a loss but did not realise the true extent of these until later, and was forced to use the profits from Drury Lane to cover the losses at the other two theatres until he was able to sell the leases on. From 1870 to 1873 Chatterton produced no Shakespearian productions at Drury Lane, but the 1873–4 season opened with a spectacular production of "Antony and Cleopatra" in which Cleopatra sailed on her barge down the Nile (not the Cydnus) and the Battle of Actium was fought between galleys on a canvas sea. However, Halliday reduced the play from thirty-four scenes to twelve thus leaving out numerous characters and various plotlines which angered fans of Shakespeare and causing the production to lose between £4,000 and £5,000.