Medieval drama Medieval drama Drama has its origins in church ceremonies, performed in Latin. So drama evolved from liturgy and Biblical events, these events were dramatised in the church. Usually there was a dialogue between the priest and the audience. Before these events were dramatised at the altar, then at the church doors or in street ? procession. Guilds (? corporations of artisans, craftsman) represented drama out of the church under the supervision of the Church. Dramas were represented in towns were fairs were held: York, Wakefield and Coventry, so that we have the cycles of these cities. These representations were called mystery or miracle plays. From these representations, we pass to the moralities. Moralities or morality plays In the moralities the characters are divided into good characters and evil characters. The characters are personification of virtues and vices, fighting one another to win the man's soul. Mankind or “everyman” is the personification of a common man that had to travel from the city of destruction to the city of salvation without stopping: a journey, a travel to the city of salvation. The next step, after the moralities is the interlude that consists in short dialogue with comics elements, there is also an introduction of dance, music and pantomime. The interlude is the link between medieval and Elizabethan drama. The Elizabethan Theatre The great age of the Elizabethan theatre started with Christopher Marlowe's Tamburlaine that was first performed in 1587. It ends with losing of the theatres in 1642. Various reasons have been given for the rise and development of Elizabethan drama: the importation and translation of foreign plays, especially Italian; the great popularity of Seneca's plays for the tragedies and Plotus' plays for the comedies; the influence of Italian Commedia dell'Arte travelling companies, which toured England in 1560s and 1570s; the development of interludes. The humanistic influence Humanistic drama had its origins in Italy. It contributed three important innovations: the medieval theatrical performance (interlude), which was based on ritualistic action, dancing and pantomime, became a literary work; the stage was separated from the space reserved for the audience; the action of the play was set in a specific time and place. The influence of Senaca His most important tragedies were translated into English and finally collected under the title of Seneca's Ten Tragedies. the idea of tragedy as involving horrific and bloody events; the motif of revenge; the omnipotence of destiny; the importance of supernatural; the figure of cruel tyrant = villain (i.e. Iago); the monologue or soliloquy; a highly rhetorical language, declamatory style; lively dialogues. Pre-Shakespearean Drama The first great success is the tragedy Gorboduc (1561) by Thomas Norton and Thomas Sackville. It is written in blank verse and it is divided into five acts. The plays were written by a group of dramatists call Continua »