Staging
Depending on the area of the performances, the plays were performed in the middle of the street, on pageant wagons in the streets of great cities (this was inconvenient for the actors because the small stage size made stage movement impossible), in the halls of nobility, or in the round in amphitheatres, as suggested by current archaeology in Cornwall and the southwest of England. All medieval stage production was temporary and expected to be removed upon the completion of the performances. Actors, predominantly male, typically wore long, dark robes. Medieval plays such as the Wakefield cycle, or the Digby Magdalene featured lively interplay between two distinct areas, the wider spaces in front of the raised staging areas, and the elevated areas themselves (called, respectively, the locus and the platea). Typically too, actors would move between these locations in order to suggest scene changes, rather than remain stationary and have the scene change around them as is typically done in modern theater.
The dramas remained religious but were no longer strictly liturgical; therefore, they were not exclusively performed in the church or before the gates of the church. When staging later Medieval theatre, it was important to have spectacle and present a realistic depiction of the play so the audience members would see and feel the characters whom religious traditions may have not fully presented. Although the main key to having widespread knowledge of the plays was the vernacular language they were performed in, the spectacle of action, props, costumes and stage direction enhanced the production and its interpretation by the audience. Thus, scenery, stage machinery and costumes enabled a more realistic depiction of the message the play was trying to promote. Whether on a fixed stage, with more opportunity for spectacle, or on a pageant wagon that moved through the streets, the ornate details and tricks attributed to these productions enhanced the audience’s experience of the play.
More examples of the Medieval Stage
Read more about this topic: Medieval Theatre
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