The Theatre in the Middle Ages: Western European Stage Conditions, c.800-1576

by William Tydeman

Overview

Popular and scholarly works on the Elizabethan stage have long familiarised readers and playgoers with the main features of a typical Shakespearian playhouse, yet medieval stage conditions remain far less well known, despite the amount of research in this area recently. In this survey of findings and theories (some unavoidably controversial), William Tydeman covers central aspects of western European theatre from the Dark Ages to the building of the first public theatres towards the end of the sixteenth century. The book begins by examining the ancient rituals from which drama sprang, the legacy bequeathed by the Roman stage to popular entertainers of the Middle Ages, and the rôle of the histrionic impulse in Christian worship. Subsequent chapters describe in some detail the varying methods of medieval staging - indoors, processional, and al fresco - settings, costumes, and effects, the way performers were chosen and organised, how the plays were financed and how their audiences responded. Half-tone and line illustrations clarify various points of theatrical detail in the text.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521293044
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	03/15/1979
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	312
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.80(d)

Table of Contents

List of illustrations; Preface; Map of Western Europe; Map of Britain; 1. Ritual survivals; 2. Classic and Christian; 3. Indoor theatre; 4. Street theatre; 5. Open-air theatre; 6. Resources and effects; 7. The performers; 8. Financing the plays; Epilogue; Chronological table, 800–1576; Notes; Select bibliography; Glossary of technical terms; Index.