Medieval theatre encompassestheatre in the period between the fall of theWestern Roman Empire in the 5th century and the beginning of theRenaissance in approximately the 15th century. The category of "medieval theatre" is vast, covering dramatic performance inEurope over a thousand-year period. A broad spectrum of genres needs to be considered, includingmystery plays,morality plays,farces andmasques. The themes were almost always religious. The most famous examples are the English cycle dramas, theYork Mystery Plays, theChester Mystery Plays, theWakefield Mystery Plays, and theN-Town Plays, as well as themorality play known asEveryman. One of the first surviving secular plays in English isThe Interlude of the Student and the Girl (c. 1300).
Due to a lack of surviving records and texts, low literacy in the general population, and the opposition of the clergy, there are few surviving sources from theEarly andHigh Medieval periods. However, by thelate period,performances began to become more secularized; larger number of records survive.
Because contemporary conceptions about theatre differ radically from the performance culture of the pre-modern world, it is difficult to find appropriate terms. First, "medieval" denotes a time period (500–1500) far too large and complex to understand in short descriptions. And within it, there was "a vast and varied spectrum of kinds of performances:ludus, jeu, ordo, representatio, officium, pagina, miraculum, mystère, processus, interlude, morality,mumming, disguising, and, of course, play."[1] These had little to do with stage performance in the 21st century.
As theWestern Roman Empire fell into severe decay through the 4th and 5th centuries A.D., the seat of Roman power shifted toConstantinople and theEastern Roman Empire, later called theByzantine Empire. While surviving evidence about Byzantine theatre is slight, existing records show thatmime,pantomime, scenes or recitations fromtragedies andcomedies,dances, and other entertainments were very popular. Constantinople had two theatres that were in use as late as the 6th century A.D. However, the true importance of the Byzantines in theatrical history is their preservation of many classical Greek texts and the compilation of a massive encyclopedia called theSuda, from which is derived a large amount of contemporary information on Greek theatre.[2] In 526 AD, EmperorJustinian withdrew state support and funding from the theatres, which resulted in the Hippodrome of Constantinople being the only remaining venue for theatre plays;[3] the wife of the EmperorJustinian, theEmpress Theodora, performed at the Hippodrome prior to her marriage. This development were the same in provincial cities, were "mime performances" were now only noted at the city arena between the races, as well as actors and artist being hired for private performances in people's homes.[4]
The decrees in of 691-692 byJustinian II were aimed at eradicating all remains of Pagan customs and pre-Christians rites: the Canon 51 banned 51 mimes, pantomimes and wild animal shows, and the Canon 62 banned pre-Christian rites, such as 1 March when women danced in public, as well as men dressing as women and women dressing as men and the wearing of comic, tragic or satyric masks.[5]After the 690s acting was formally banned in the Byzantine Empire. However it appeared acting still continued clandestinly and tolerated in some circumstances despite the decree. In the comment of Balsamon from the 12th century he pointed out that the acting once banned was not the same as the acting that now took place on the emperor's pleasure, which indicate that acting still occurred; and performances of "mime artists" are noted to have taken place at the Hippodrome in the carnivals of 1118 and 1168.[6]
Theatres were considered by many to be a diabolical threat toChristianity, especially because new converts continued to attend. Church fathers such asTatian,Tertullian andAugustine characterized the stage as an instrument of corruption, whileacting was consideredsinful because its imitation of life was considered a mockery of God's creation.[7] Roman actors were forbidden to have contact with Christian women, own slaves, or wear gold. They were officiallyexcommunicated, denied thesacraments, includingmarriage andburial, and were defamed throughout Europe. For many centuries thereafter, clerics were cautioned to not allow travelling actors to perform in their jurisdiction.[7]
Hrosvitha (c. 935–973), an aristocratic canoness and historian in northernGermany, wrote six plays modeled onTerence's comedies but using religious subjects in the 10th century. These six plays are the first known plays composed by a female dramatist and the first identifiable Western dramatic works of the post-Classical era.[8] In order to preempt criticism from the Church, Hrosvitha declared that she sought to imitate the "laudable" deeds of women in Terence's plays and discard the "shameless" ones.[9] They were first published in 1501 and had considerable influence in the sixteenth century. Another nun who wrote plays was the abbessHildegard of Bingen (d. 1179), who wrote a drama calledOrdo Virtutum in 1155.
The origins ofItalian theatre are a source of debate among scholars, as they are not yet clear and traceable with certain sources. Since the end of thetheatre of ancient Rome, which partly coincided with thefall of the Western Roman Empire, mimes and comedies were still performed. Alongside this pagan form of representation, mostly performed by tropes and wandering actors of which there are no direct written sources, the theatre was reborn, in medieval times, from religious functions and from the dramatization of some tropes of which the most famous and ancient is the shortQuem quaeritis? from the 10th century, still inLatin.
It can therefore be assumed that there were two main lines on which the ancient Italian theatre developed. The first, consisting of the dramatization of Catholic liturgies and of which more documentation is retained, and the second, formed by pagan forms of spectacle such as the staging for city festivals,[10] the court preparations of the jesters and the songs of thetroubadours.[11]
From the 5th century,Western Europe was plunged into a period of general disorder that lasted (with a brief period of stability under theCarolingian Empire in the 9th century) until the 10th century. As such, most organized theatrical activities disappeared inWestern Europe.[citation needed] While it seems that small nomadic bands travelled around Europe throughout the period, performing wherever they could find an audience, there is no evidence that they produced anything but crude scenes.[12] These performers were denounced by theChurch during theDark Ages as they were viewed as dangerous and pagan.
Faced with the problem of explaining a new religion to a largely illiterate population, churches in theEarly Middle Ages began staging dramatized versions of particular biblical events on specific days of the year. The dramatizations were included in order to vivify annual celebrations.[13] Symbolic objects and actions (vestments,altars,censers, andpantomime performed by priests) recalled the events which Christian ritual celebrates. TheWhom do you Seek (Quem-Quaeritis) Easter trope, dating from ca. 925, is an example of performing the events surround Christ's empty grave.[13] The text was sung responsively by two groups and was not considered to be "acting" in the sense of impersonation. Sometime between 965 and 975,Æthelwold of Winchester composed theRegularis Concordia (Monastic Agreement) which contains a playlet complete with directions for performance.[8]
The anonymous pagan playQuerolus, written around 420, was adapted in the 12th century byVitalis of Blois. Other secular Latin plays, such asBabio, were also written in the 12th century, mainly in France but also in England. It is also known thatmimes,minstrels,bards, storytellers, andjugglers travelled in search of new audiences and financial support. Not much is known about these performers' repertoire. One of the most famous of the secular plays is the musicalLe Jeu de Robin et Marion, written byAdam de la Halle in the 13th century, which is fully laid out in the original manuscript with lines, musical notation, and illuminations in the margins depicting the actors in motion. Adam also wrote other plays.
Hrosvitha (c. 935 – 973), a canoness in northernGermany, wrote six plays modeled onTerence's comedies but using religious subjects. These six plays –Abraham, Callimachus, Dulcitius, Gallicanus, Paphnutius,andSapientia – are the first known plays composed by a female dramatist and the first identifiable Western dramatic works of the post-classical era.[8] They were first published in 1501 and had considerable influence on religious and didactic plays of the sixteenth century. Hrosvitha was followed byHildegard of Bingen (d. 1179), aBenedictine abbess, who wrote aLatinmusical drama calledOrdo Virtutum in 1155.
As theViking invasions ceased in the middle of the 11th century,liturgical drama had spread fromRussia toScandinavia toItaly. Only inMuslim-occupied Iberian Peninsula were liturgical dramas not presented at all. Despite the large number of liturgical dramas that have survived from the period, many churches would have only performed one or two per year and a larger number never performed any at all.[14]
TheFeast of Fools was especially important in the development of comedy. The festival inverted the status of the lesser clergy and allowed them to ridicule their superiors and the routine of church life. Sometimes plays were staged as part of the occasion and a certain amount ofburlesque and comedy crept into these performances. Although comic episodes had to truly wait until the separation of drama from the liturgy, the Feast of Fools undoubtedly had a profound effect on the development of comedy in both religious and secular plays.[15]
Performance of religious plays outside of the church began sometime in the 12th century through a traditionally accepted process of merging shorter liturgical dramas into longer plays which were then translated intovernacular and performed by laymen.The Mystery of Adam (1150) gives credence to this theory as its detailed stage direction suggest that it was staged outdoors. A number of other plays from the period survive, includingLa Seinte Resurrection (Norman),The Play of the Magi Kings (Spanish), andSponsus (French).
The importance of theHigh Middle Ages in the development of theatre was theeconomic andpolitical changes that led to the formation ofguilds and the growth of towns. This would lead to significant changes in theLate Middle Ages. In theBritish Isles, plays were produced in some 127 different towns during the Middle Ages. These vernacularMystery plays were written in cycles of a large number of plays:York (48 plays),Chester (24),Wakefield (32) andUnknown (42). A larger number of plays survive from France and Germany in this period and some type of religious dramas were performed in nearly every European country in theLate Middle Ages. Many of these plays contained comedy,devils,villains andclowns.[16]
The theatre historian therefore based his research method, in the field of the origins of Italian theatre, not only on the actual study of his own subject but also combining it withethnological andanthropological study as well as that of religious studies in a broad sense.[17][18]
The Catholic Church, which found in the dramatization of the liturgies a more than favorable welcome from the masses, as demonstrated by the development of theatrical practice on major holidays, paradoxically had a contradictory behavior towards them: if on the one hand it allowed and encouraged their diffusion, however he always deprecated its practice, because it was misleading from the principles of Catholicism.[19] The pagan spectacles suffered the same fate, where the judgments and measures taken by the religious were much harsher: still in 1215, a Constitution of theLateran Council forbade clerics (among other things) to have contact with histrions and jugglers.[20] The strong contrast of religious authority to theatrical practice decreed a series of circumstances that differentiate medieval theatre (which still cannot be defined as "Italian" in the strict sense) from that known from Humanism onwards, much closer to the modern concept of theatrical representation. For over ten centuries there was never the construction of atheatrical building, unlike what happened in ancient Greece and imperial Rome.
Despite the numerous restrictions, the vernacular dramaturgy develops due to thetrouvères and jesters, who sing, lute in hand, the most disparate topics: from love driven towards women to mockery towards the powerful. There is evidence in theLaurentian Rhythm of 1157 and in other more or less contemporary rhythms such as theRhythm of Sant'Alessio, of the dramatization in verse by anonymous people in the vernacular, although the metric is still indebted to the Latin versification. More famous is the XIII centuryRosa fresca aulentissima, byCielo d'Alcamo, a real jester mime destined for stage representation, which does not spare double entenders and overly licentious jokes towards the fair sex in verses.
Even more articulated were the texts ofRuggieri Apuliese, a jester of the 13th century of which there is little or no news, mostly discordant, but in which a sardonic ability can be traced to parody and dramatize the events, enclosed in hisgab andserventesi. During the 13th century, however, the jester prose in the vernacular suffered a setback due to the marginalization of the events to which it was linked: representations in Curta, street performances, and more of which the chronicle does not remember.
The lauda dramatica flourished in the same period, which later evolved into thesacred representation:[21] thelauda, derived from the popular ballad, was made up ofstanzas represented first in verse, then in the form of dialogue. An example of transformation into a dialogic drama is a result ofDonna de Paradiso byJacopone da Todi, where the dialogue betweenJohn the Baptist, theMary andJesus is articulated on a religious topic: in it there is a fine linguistic and lexical intervention (the subdued language of the Mary and Christ compared to that of the John the Baptist) and a skilful capacity for dramatizing the event. It should be emphasized that this type of religious theatricality did not properly spread within the Church, but developed above all in Umbria following a serious plague that decimated the country, due to theFlagellant, congregations of faithful used to self-flagellation, which by virtue of their religious acts they well combined the processions of repentance with accompaniment with dramaticlaudi. If they found representation inOrvieto, as in other Umbrian centers (remember the famousCorporal of Bolsena), another important epicenter of laude productions wasL'Aquila,[22] where the articulation of the same was such as to require three days for a complete representation (as in the case of the anonymousLeggenna de Sancto Tomascio).
The majority of actors in these plays were drawn from the local population. For example, atValenciennes in 1547, more than 100 roles were assigned to 72 actors.[23] Plays were staged onpageant wagon stages, which were platforms mounted on wheels used to move scenery. The amateurs often provided their own costumes. The platform stage, which was an unidentified space and not a specific locale, allowed for abrupt changes in location.
The amateurs engaged to perform in religious plays were typically drawn from their sponsoring church congregations, and the common thing was to engaged men to perform also the female parts.[24] However, women were not explictly banned and there were cases in which women were appointed to play. Amateur performers in England were exclusively male, but other countries had female performers. In 1514, for example, women were engaged to perform all the female roles in the Bozen Passion Play in the city ofBolzano.[24]
A separate chapter with respect to religious representation consists of those productions in Latin verse known aselegiac comedies (medieval Latin comedies). It is a set ofMedieval Latin texts, mainly composed of the metric form of theelegiac couplet[25] and characterized, almost always, by the alternation ofdialogues and narrated parts and by comic and licentious contents.
The flowering of the genus is mainly inscribed within the European season of the so-calledrebirth of the 12th century and is affected by the ferment of that cultural climate that the philologistLudwig Traube calledAetas Ovidiana. as a whole, it was a phenomenon that certainly cannot be affirmed as Italian: on the contrary, Italy was just touched by this phenomenon, in a later period, the thirteenth century: all Italian productions refer to the environment of the court and chancellery ofFrederick II, Holy Roman Emperor (the singularDe Paulino et Polla byRiccardo da Venosa, and theDe uxore cerdonis, attributed toJacopo da Benevento).[26]
However, their genuine theatrical nature is not clear: it is not known, for example, if they were mere rhetorical products or rather works intended for a real staging (in this case, acting with a single voice is considered more likely);[27] not even one is able to appreciate the influence on the rise of medieval theatre in the vernacular, even if some comic elements have passed to the theatre. The small flowering of this genus enjoyed considerable success; its importance in literary history is noteworthy, due to its influence on subsequent authors in vulgar languages, in particular on medieval fabliaulistics and novellistics of which they anticipate themes and tones, and on humanistic comedy of the fifteenth century.
Throughout the Middle Ages no theatrical building was ever built, so that it is impossible to speak of theatrical architecture. Regarding the scenography, it can be completely placed on the level of sacred representations, since jesters and buffoons, troubadours and singers did not use support elements that could help the spectator in the figuration of the story narrated. The almost nil iconographic support that has come makes a faithful reconstruction difficult, but the lists of the Brotherhood "stuff", which have come down to us, have been helpful, testifying to a wealth of furnishings not comparable to the modern conception of theatre but still of a certain thickness: the list of thePerugian brotherhood ofSaint Dominic is very well known, where you can find shirts, gloves, cassocks, wigs and masks.[28]
The representations, which came out of the church in search of larger places of reception and where there was the possibility of using scenic artists certainly not welcome within consecrated walls, found a place in the churchyards first, in the squares and then even in the streets of the city, both in the form of a procession that does not. The pictorial support, which was necessary for a more complete recognition of the place represented and narrated, also became very important, although no names of artists who worked for their realization have come down to us. It must be borne in mind that there is no figure of set-up or set designer, so such works necessarily had to submit to the requests of the brotherhoods, and almost certainly carried out by untrained artists or of little fame given that the possible gain was little.
Morality plays emerged as a distinct dramatic form around 1400 and flourished until 1550. The most interesting morality play[according to whom?] isThe Castle of Perseverance which depictsmankind's progress from birth to death. However, the most famous morality play and perhaps best known medieval drama isEveryman. Everyman receivesDeath's summons, struggles to escape and finally resigns himself to necessity. Along the way, he is deserted byKindred,Goods, andFellowship – onlyGood Deeds goes with him to the grave.
There were also a number of secular performances staged in the Middle Ages, the earliest of which isThe Play of the Greenwood byAdam de la Halle in 1276. It contains satirical scenes andfolk material such asfaeries and other supernatural occurrences.Farces also rose dramatically in popularity after the 13th century. The majority of these plays come from France and Germany and are similar in tone and form, emphasizingsex and bodily excretions.[29] The best known playwright of farces isHans Sachs (1494–1576) who wrote 198 dramatic works. In England,The Second Shepherds' Play of theWakefield Cycle is the best known early farce. However, farce did not appear independently in England until the 16th century with the work ofJohn Heywood (1497–1580).
A significant forerunner of the development ofElizabethan drama was theChambers of Rhetoric in theLow Countries.[30] These societies were concerned withpoetry,music anddrama and held contests to see which society could compose the best drama in relation to a question posed.
At the end of theLate Middle Ages, professional actors began to appear inEngland andEurope.Richard III andHenry VII both maintained small companies of professional actors. Their plays were performed in theGreat Hall of a nobleman's residence, often with a raised platform at one end for the audience and a "screen" at the other for the actors. Also important wereMummers' plays, performed during theChristmas season, and courtmasques. These masques were especially popular during the reign ofHenry VIII who had a House of Revels built and anOffice of Revels established in 1545.[31]
The end of medieval drama came about due to a number of factors, including the weakening power of theCatholic Church, theProtestant Reformation and the banning of religious plays in many countries.Elizabeth I forbid all religious plays in 1558 and the great cycle plays had been silenced by the 1580s. Similarly, religious plays were banned in theNetherlands in 1539, thePapal States in 1547 and inParis in 1548. The abandonment of these plays destroyed the international theatre that had thereto existed and forced each country to develop its own form of drama. It also allowed dramatists to turn to secular subjects and the reviving interest inGreek andRoman theatre provided them with the perfect opportunity.[31]
Changing political and economic factors greatly affected theatre at the end of the Middle Ages and beginning of theModern Era. First, theProtestant Reformation targeted the theatre, especially in England, in an effort to stamp out allegiance to Rome. InWakefield, for example, the local mystery cycle text shows signs of Protestant editing, with references to thepope crossed out. It was not just Protestants who attacked the theatre: TheCouncil of Trent banned religious plays in an attempt to rein in the extrabiblical material.[citation needed]
A revival of interest inancient Roman andGreek culture changed the tastes of the learned classes in the performing arts.Greek andRoman plays were performed and new plays were written that were heavily influenced by the classical style. This led to the creation ofCommedia dell'arte and influencedRenaissance theatre.
A change of patronage also caused drastic changes to the theatre. In England, the monarch and nobility started to support professional theatre troupes (includingShakespeare'sLord Chamberlain's Men andKing's Men), which catered to their upper-class patrons' tastes.
Finally, the construction of permanent theaters, such asThe Theatre, signaled a major turning point. Permanent theaters allowed for more sophisticated staging and storytelling.
Mummers plays are still performed regularly throughout theUnited Kingdom as well as the U.S., such as the annualMummers Parade inPhiladelphia.[32] What relation they may bear to their medieval antecedents is unknown. The surviving texts of this oral tradition were recorded in the 18th century, at a time when theIndustrial Revolution began to break up the rural communities in which the plays were performed.
Mystery plays are still produced regularly throughout theUnited Kingdom. The local cycles were revived in bothYork andChester in 1951 as part of theFestival of Britain, and are still performed by the local guilds.[33] The N-Town cycle was revived in 1978 as theLincoln mystery plays,[34] and in 1994 theLichfield Mysteries were inaugurated (now the largestcommunity theatre event in the United Kingdom).[35]
In 1977, theNational Theatre commissionedTony Harrison to createThe Mysteries, a re-working of theWakefield Cycle and others.[36] It was revived in 1985 (whereupon the production was filmed forChannel 4 Television), and again as a part of the theatre's millennium celebration in 2000.[37] The productions wonBill Bryden the "Best Director" title in both theEvening Standard Theatre Awards and theOlivier Awards for 1985, the year the three plays first appeared together in performance at theLyceum Theatre. An adaptation of Harrison's play was staged atShakespeare's Globe in 2011 asThe Globe Mysteries.[38]
In 2001, theIsango Ensemble produced an African version of the Chester Cycle at theGarrick Theatre in London asThe Mysteries – Yiimimangaliso, performing in a combination ofXhosa,Zulu, English,Latin andAfrikaans. They revived an adapted version of the production at Shakespeare's Globe in 2015 asThe Mysteries.[39] In 2004, two mystery plays (one focusing on the Creation and the other on the Passion) were performed atCanterbury Cathedral, with actorEdward Woodward in the role of God. The large cast also includedDaniel MacPherson,Thomas James Longley andJoseph McManners.[40]
The first modern stage production ofEveryman did not appear until July 1901, when TheElizabethan Stage Society ofWilliam Poel gave three outdoor performances at theCharterhouse in London.[41] Poel then partnered with British actorBen Greet to produce the play throughout Britain, with runs on the AmericanBroadway stage from 1902 to 1918,[42] and concurrent tours throughout North America. These productions differed from past performances in that women were cast in the title role, rather than men. Film adaptations of the 1901 version of the play appeared in 1913 and 1914, with the 1913 film being made inKinemacolor, an early two color process.[43][44]
Another well-known version of the play isJedermann by theAustrian playwrightHugo von Hofmannsthal, which has been performed annually at theSalzburg Festival since 1920.[45] The play was made intoa film of the same title in 1961. A direct-to-video movie version ofEveryman was made in 2002, directed by John Farrell, which updated the setting to the early 21st century.[46] An adaptation byCarol Ann Duffy, theBritish Poet Laureate, was performed at theNational Theatre (UK) in 2015 withChiwetel Ejiofor in the title role.[47]
Performances of Christ's Nativity are frequent during the Christmas season, and many schools andSunday school groups regularly perform scenes from the bible with children. The reenactment of Jesus Christ's Passion is performed throughout the world inLent.
– 1913 film version. – 1914 film version.
