1. Renaissance theatre England

2. Sources English theater during the Renaissance draws on two distinctly different traditions – Medieval theater Religious dramas – The revival of classical Roman theater (remember that Renaissance refers to the “rebirth” of classical culture) Classical culture is filtered through Rome – little direct access to Greek theater

3. Medieval Theater No extant theatrical rituals from “dark ages” – 5 th C to ~ 11 th C – All memories of classical Roman dramas that may have been performed in Roman Briton before the 5 th C are lost – Medieval drama begins with Church ritual – the mass is a dramatization / ritual re-enactment of the Last Supper – First “drama” probably 11 th C re-enactment of Mary Magdalen finding the risen Christ on Easter morning – performed at Easter matins by Benedictine nuns/monks

4. Medieval Dramas staged... Courtyards outside churches Village greens / town squares – Each year on “Corpus Christi” – June – the medieval English churches would celebrate for three “no work – all play and feasting days” and put on three days of plays to re-enact important Biblical stories from Genesis to Revelations – Each guild in town had its own “story” re-done every year

5. Mystery Play Setting

6. Corpus Christi plays Rural folks came into the towns to watch the town-folks perform these Biblical stories (~ 30 mins each story) Remember how few people were literate, so this provides the only access to Biblical stories for many medieval folks Plays were set up on wagons or carts – movable stages, and the audience moved from cart to cart to follow the action

7. Later medieval plays Medieval folks branched out a bit from the Bible and began dramatizing – Saints’ lives – origin of the Saint Nicholas myth is found in plays about St Nicholas saving girls from lives of prostitution by throwing a sack of coins down the chimney (a dowry to buy a husband) – “Everyman” plots in which an ordinary man lives an ordinary sinful life and then repents and is saved (Morality plays) – Folk hero plays – Robin Hood, etc.

8. Dramas / Masques / Dances All these became aristocratic entertainment as well as popular entertainment. Plays staged in “great halls” of castles Plays staged for barristers at the Inns of Court in London (these guys loved to pay for food, drink and entertainment – a sort of “eating club” mentality) Some staged in courtyards of inns for less well-to-do patrons.

9. Banquet Hall at Inns of Court in London

10. Medieval inn’s courtyard

11. Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre

12. Another picture of the Globe

13. One last Globe...

14. Renaissance plays -- seasonal Outdoor / partially roofed theaters in large cities – stand in the weather – cheaply – sit under some shelter – more costly Indoor great hall performances for the wealthy Shakespeare wrote for both venues

15. Great Hall