Cultures of Performance in Medieval and Early Modern Europe

Just a little list of some brilliant academic projects and performance art, past and present, representing our vibrant and expanding field.

Have other suggestions? Let us know!

Before Shakespeare: The Beginnings of London Commercial Theatre: an AHRC-funded project that explores the beginnings of London’s commercial theatres in the mid-Tudor and Elizabethan periods.

Early English Drama and Performance Network: brings together researchers, students and practitioners working with medieval and early modern drama and performance. Also has further useful links, a list of scholars working in the field, and details of an annual postgraduate symposium.

Early Drama at Oxford: a systematic study of plays written and/or performed in the Oxford colleges between 1480 and 1650. You can also find filmed performances of some of these plays in their original contexts.

Early Modern London Theatres: a research database and educational resource about pre-1642 documents related to professional performance in purpose-built theatres and other permanent structures in the London area.

Fair Field: a multi-arts re-imagining of the fourteenth-century Middle English poem Piers Plowman, held in July 2017.

Interpreting Medieval Liturgy: a project that brought together historians, musicologists, literary scholars, theologians, palaeographers and art and architectural historians, to discuss the problems involved in studying the surviving evidence for occasional services. They also enacted and filmed an iteration of the Sarum Rite for the Reconciliation of Penitents in a medieval church, videos of which can be found on the website.

Medieval English Theatre Society: a society that promotes interest in and study of early theatre both within and beyond the academic community.

Performing Medieval Narrative Today: resources for scholars, teachers, students and performers to explore contemporary performance of medieval narrative. Includes videos of selected performances.

Performing Old Norse Poetry: films of several modern performances of Eddic poetry hosted by the World Tree Project, an interactive digital archive for the teaching and study of Norse and Viking cultures.

The Plainsong and Medieval Music Society: a scholarly society that promotes the performance and study of liturgical chant and medieval polyphony.

Patrons and Performances:  a searchable database about professional performers on tour in the provinces – their patrons, the performance venues they used and the routes they took across England.

Poculi Ludique Societas: a Canadian company that sponsors productions of early plays, from the beginnings of medieval drama to middle of the seventeenth century.

Records of Early English Drama: North East: a fantastic website for the North East wing of the major Records of Early English Drama project. The site hosts regular blog posts, as well as filmed performances of liturgical drama, mummings, the York Play of the Crucifixion, Renaissance dancing and… a dragon!

Staging the Henrician Court: an AHRC-funded research project which had at its heart a production of John Heywood’s The Play of the Weather staged in the Great Hall at Hampton Court Palace in 2009. The website includes introductions to key research topics, primary sources and videos of some of the performances.

Staging and Representing the Scottish Renaissance Court: a major project exploring the earliest surviving Scottish play, A Satire of the Three Estates, including a full production of the play performed at Linlithgow Castle in 2013. The website includes filmed performances, a blog and resources for further study