The Origins of Repertory in English Drama; or, How to Find Needles in Haystacks
Article
Article Title | The Origins of Repertory in English Drama; or, How to Find Needles in Haystacks |
---|---|
ERA Journal ID | 34773 |
Article Category | Article |
Authors | Johnson, Laurie |
Journal Title | Medieval and Renaissance Drama in England: an annual gathering of research, criticism, and reviews |
Journal Citation | 37, pp. 35-66 |
Number of Pages | 32 |
Year | 2024 |
Publisher | Fairleigh Dickinson University Press |
Place of Publication | United States |
ISSN | 0731-3403 |
Web Address (URL) | https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781683934295/Medieval-and-Renaissance-Drama-in-England-Volume-37 |
Abstract | The term “repertory” can refer both to a playing company’s repertoire or stock of plays and to the type of theatre involving the performance of plays from a repertoire in regular rotation. In the theatre history approach defined as repertory studies, the term should mean the latter, but slippages often occur, particularly where a scholar contrasts available evidence of different company repertories in early English drama. The potential slippage between two meanings of the term also makes questions about the origins of the repertory playing model difficult to investigate, as this article discusses. Building on a recent study of the first great Elizabethan playing company, the Earl of Leicester’s Men, this article then seeks to demonstrate that such difficulties can be negotiated by approaching the supposedly unrecoverable repertory of this early company using the core methods of repertory studies, with specific focus on identifying duplicate plays, sequels, and spin-offs. Finally, the value of company studies will be brought to bear by examining the evidence of the company’s earliest public playing venues |
Keywords | Leicester's Men; Repertory; Lord Chamberlain's Men; William Shakespeare; Early English Drama |
Contains Sensitive Content | Does not contain sensitive content |
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020 | 470504. British and Irish literature |
430304. British history | |
Public Notes | Files associated with this item cannot be displayed due to copyright restrictions. |
Byline Affiliations | University of Southern Queensland |
https://research.usq.edu.au/item/z9wxw/the-origins-of-repertory-in-english-drama-or-how-to-find-needles-in-haystacks
14
total views1
total downloads14
views this month1
downloads this month