THAR 280 Lecture 19: medieval theatre
29 Nov 2016
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Document Summary
Little travel = no exchange of ideas (because of the bubonic plague: any entertainment had to go to them. Fall of rome, then the church came in. For 400 years, no drama except: several folk festivals (because the church kept many pagan stuff, wandering jugglers and minstrels. Traveling performers: minstrels, jugglers, acrobats, bards, mimes, puppeteers, performed in taverns and at festivals, court for nobility (the wealthy wanted to show off how much money they had) Festivals usually contained both pagan and christian elements (ex: halloween and christmas celebrations: the church had problems with growing too large. The roman catholic church was responsible for the rebirth of european theatre in the 10th - 12th century. All europe had been converted to christianity. The church needed ways to teach illiterate parishioners: cathedrals, stained glass windows, sculptures, painting, and drama. Religious rituals: the mass, baptism, etc, embody theatrical elements. The first short plays were called tropes (bits of physical activity accompanied with music)
