ORIGIN OF ENGLISH DRAMA

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 287, 4 September 1928, Page 9

ORIGIN OF ENGLISH DRAMA

SKE THEATRE’S APPEAL fon interesting survey of the origins and early history of the English drama WB given by Mrs. J. Hannah, in a lector® to the Workers’ Educational Association on Saturday evening. She said that any art was the expression of man’s spirit, and its most fascinating quality ■was its growth and yet its immobility. As man had evolved through the ages, his art had grown with him, but had still retained never-changing elements ■which corresponded to the ever-seeking, never-answered longings and aspirations of man. The use of the drama was almost universal. The fundamental human need had always been for man to express himself in action, and this insistent urge gave rise in ancient times to the feelings of religious ecstasy, to Dionyifius ritual, and to the tragedy and comedy of Greece. The appeal of the drama was that it offered a way of escape from self, and that its means could be employed by all. It required no special art, such as sculpture or painting, and its appeal therefore, was usually wider than that of any other nrt. It established a relation between the actor and the onlooker, and created an impression as well as providing a means of expression. Mrs. Hannah referred to the various elements of appeal in the art of the theatre, such as movement, voice, colour, music, and imagination. She pointed out that plays had always been used as an excellent form of propaganda, and were introduced into England in early times to convey to the people the truths of the Christian religion when they were too ignorant to think for themselves. Primitive man’s relation to the unknown powers was represented by fear, and his emotions found relief in religious ecstasy. As Roman power in early Briton began gradually to wane, the theatre Buffered from gross abuses and the violence, coarseness, and cruelty which it represented, met with strong opposition from the Christian church, whose leaders feared the influence of the old pagan philosophers. The Emperor Julian passed a decree that no Christians should attend a theatre, but the people had been used to this type of festival, however debased it had become, and they resented its withdrawal. It was found necessary to offer a substitute, and this was given in the form of plays founded on Biblical Stories, and incidents from the lives ot the saints. From Church to Street. Mrs. Hannah traced the gradual development of the drama from church to street, and from the village green to the market place. She said that iu 1-10 Pope Gregory forbade the clergy taking any further part in the performances, and that their place was taken by the tradesmen of the village. During the next century a great impetus was given to the production of the miracle plays by the setting aside of the Corpus Christie day as a public festival. Cycle plays were performed in the different towns by the guildsmen, the people' celebrating the event as a public holiday. The dresses worn by the actors became more elaborate, and were splendid rather than appropriate. A mediaeval ReP e p tory Theatre was formed by the Guilds of York, Chester, Townley, and Coventry, each town having its own cycle ot plays,- and the expenses being borne by a levy on the guild members. The lecturer explained the different points in regard to each, and showed how comedy was gradually introduced into the plays in order to afford relief. The characters of Adam and Eve, Noah, and his wife, were frequently given, and the plays were simple, naive, and sometimes very touching in character. Many people were anxious to take part in their production, and the Pope and Bishops granted pardons to those who supported them. Most of the miracle plays had since been destroyed. Only about 150 remained at the present time, and their great value lay in the fact that they afforded glimpses of the life of the period, and were' used to drive home >.he truth to the people by everyday incidents. The morality play, “Everyman,” was produced right up to the time of the Stuarts, and the last miracle play was given in 1604. Shakespeare makes reference to them, and 010 'years later, at the commencement of the Great War, they were revived in London, when the Nativity play, “The Child in Flanders,” was written, by Cecily Hamilton, and produced by Granville Barker. The last and most wonderful performance was given three months ago, when John Masefield staged “The Coming of Christ,” in the Canterbury Cathedral. At the close of her lecture, Mrs. Hannah read some interesting extracts from a number' of the plays referred to, and was accorded a hearty vote of thanks.