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Mystery plays and miracle plays (they are distinguished as two different forms although the terms are often used interchangeably) are among the earliest formally developed
plays
Play most commonly refers to:
* Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment
* Play (theatre), a work of drama
Play may refer also to:
Computers and technology
* Google Play, a digital content service
* Play Framework, a Java framework
* Pla ...
in
medieval Europe
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
. Medieval mystery plays focused on the representation of
Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
stories in
churches as
tableaux
The International Conference on Automated Reasoning with Analytic Tableaux and Related Methods (TABLEAUX) is an annual international academic conference that deals with all aspects of automated reasoning with analytic tableaux. Periodically, it joi ...
with accompanying
antiphonal song. They told of subjects such as the Creation, Adam and Eve, the murder of Abel, and the
Last Judgment
The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...
. Often they were performed together in cycles which could last for days. The name derives from ''
mystery
Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters
*Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange''
Films
* ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film
* ''Mystery'' ( ...
'' used in its sense of ''
miracle
A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...
,'' but an occasionally quoted derivation is from ''ministerium'', meaning ''
craft
A craft or trade is a pastime or an occupation that requires particular skills and knowledge of skilled work. In a historical sense, particularly the Middle Ages and earlier, the term is usually applied to people occupied in small scale prod ...
'', and so the 'mysteries' or plays performed by the
craft guilds
A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometimes ...
.
Origins
As early as the fifth century living tableaux were introduced into sacred services.
[Bellinger, Martha Fletcher, "A Thousand Years Of Quiescence And The Beginnings Of Sacred Drama", ''A Short History of the Drama'', New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1927. pp. 115-21]
/ref>
The plays originated as simple ''tropes'', verbal embellishments of liturgical texts, and slowly became more elaborate. At an early period chants from the service of the day were added to the prose dialogue. As these liturgical dramas increased in popularity, vernacular forms emerged, as travelling companies of actors and theatrical productions organized by local communities became more common in the later Middle Ages.
The ''Quem quaeritis?
The Latin question ''Quem quaeritis?'' (Latin for ''"Whom do you seek?"'') refers to four lines of the medieval Easter liturgy that later formed the kernel of the large body of medieval liturgical drama, which is also known as Visitatio sepulchri ...
'' is the best known early form of the dramas, a dramatised liturgical dialogue between the angel at the tomb of Christ and the women who are seeking his body.[ These primitive forms were later elaborated with dialogue and dramatic action. Eventually the dramas moved from church to the exterior - the churchyard and the public marketplace. These early performances were given in Latin, and were preceded by a vernacular prologue spoken by a herald who gave a synopsis of the events. The writers and directors of the earliest plays were probably monks. Religious drama flourished from about the ninth century to the sixteenth.
In 1210, suspicious of the growing popularity of miracle plays, ]Pope Innocent III
Pope Innocent III ( la, Innocentius III; 1160 or 1161 – 16 July 1216), born Lotario dei Conti di Segni (anglicized as Lothar of Segni), was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1198 to his death in 16 J ...
issued a papal edict forbidding clergy from acting on a public stage. This had the effect of transferring the organization of the dramas to town guilds, after which several changes followed. Vernacular texts replaced Latin, and non-Biblical passages were added along with comic scenes, for example in the '' Secunda Pastorum'' of the Wakefield Cycle
The Wakefield or Towneley Mystery Plays are a series of thirty-two mystery plays based on the Bible most likely performed around the Feast of Corpus Christi probably in the town of Wakefield, England during the Late Middle Ages until 1576. It is o ...
. Acting and characterization became more elaborate.
These vernacular religious performances were, in some of the larger cities in England such as York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
, performed and produced by guild
A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometimes ...
s, with each guild taking responsibility for a particular piece of scriptural history. From the guild control originated the term mystery play or mysteries, from the Latin ''ministerium'' meaning "occupation" (i.e. that of the guilds). The genre was again banned, following the Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
and the establishment of the Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
in 1534.
The mystery play developed, in some places, into a series of plays dealing with all the major events in the Christian calendar, from the Creation to the Day of Judgment. By the end of the 15th century, the practice of acting these plays in cycles on festival days was established in several parts of Europe. Sometimes, each play was performed on a decorated pageant cart that moved about the city to allow different crowds to watch each play as well as provided actors with a dressing room as well as a stage The entire cycle could take up to twenty hours to perform and could be spread over a number of days. Taken as a whole, these are referred to as ''Corpus Christi cycles''. These cycles were often performed during the Feast of Corpus Christi and their overall design drew attention to Christ's life and his redemption for all of mankind.
The plays were performed by a combination of professionals and amateurs and were written in highly elaborate stanza forms; they were often marked by the extravagance of the sets and 'special effects', but could also be stark and intimate. There was a wide variety of theatrical and poetic styles, even in a single cycle of plays.
English mystery plays
There are four complete or nearly complete extant English biblical collections of plays. A collection is the '' York cycle'' of forty-eight pageants; there are also the '' Towneley plays'' of thirty-two pageants, the Ludus Coventriae
The N-Town Plays (also called the Hegge Cycle and the Ludus Coventriae cycle) are a cycle of 42 medieval Mystery plays from between 1450 and 1500.
The manuscript
The manuscript is now housed in the British Library, London (BL MS Cotton Vespasian ...
, and the '' Chester cycle'' of twenty-four pageants, now generally agreed to be an Elizabethan reconstruction of older medieval traditions. Also extant are two pageants from a New Testament cycle acted at Coventry. Additionally, a fifteenth-century play of the life of Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to crucifixion of Jesus, his cru ...
, ''The Brome Abraham and Isaac
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
'' and a sixteenth-century play of the ''Conversion of Saint Paul
Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
'' exist. Besides the Middle English
Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English p ...
drama, there are three surviving plays in Cornish known as the Ordinalia, and several cyclical plays survive from continental Europe.
These biblical plays differ widely in content. Most contain episodes such as the ''Fall of Lucifer'', the ''Creation and Fall of Man'', ''Cain and Abel'', ''Noah and the Flood'', ''Abraham and Isaac'', the ''Nativity'', the ''Raising of Lazarus'', the ''Passion'', and the ''Resurrection''. Other pageants included the story of ''Moses'', the ''Procession of the Prophets'', ''Christ's Baptism'', the ''Temptation in the Wilderness'', and the ''Assumption and Coronation of the Virgin''. In given cycles, the plays came to be sponsored by the newly emerging Medieval craft guilds. The York mercers
The Worshipful Company of Mercers is the premier Livery Company of the City of London and ranks first in the order of precedence of the Companies. It is the first of the Great Twelve City Livery Companies. Although of even older origin, the c ...
, for example, sponsored the ''Doomsday'' pageant. Other guilds presented scenes appropriate to their trade: the building of the Ark
Ark or ARK may refer to:
Biblical narratives and religion Hebrew word ''teva''
* Noah's Ark, a massive vessel said to have been built to save the world's animals from a flood
* Ark of bulrushes, the boat of the infant Moses
Hebrew ''aron''
* ...
from the carpenters' guild; the five loaves and fishes miracle from the bakers; and the visit of the Magi
The biblical Magi from Middle Persian ''moɣ''(''mard'') from Old Persian ''magu-'' 'Zoroastrian clergyman' ( or ; singular: ), also referred to as the (Three) Wise Men or (Three) Kings, also the Three Magi were distinguished foreigners in the G ...
, with their offerings of gold, frankincense and myrrh, from the goldsmiths. The guild associations are not, however, to be understood as the method of production for all towns. While the Chester pageants are associated with guilds, there is no indication that the N-Town plays are either associated with guilds or performed on pageant wagons. Perhaps the most famous of the mystery plays, at least to modern readers and audiences, are those of Wakefield. Unfortunately, we cannot know whether the plays of the Towneley manuscript are actually the plays performed at Wakefield but a reference in the ''Second Shepherds' Play'' to Horbery Shrogys is strongly suggestive. In "The London Burial Grounds" by Mrs Basil Holmes (1897), the author claims that the Holy Priory Church, next to St Katherine Cree
The Guild Church of St Katharine Cree is an Anglican church in the Aldgate ward of the City of London, on the north side of Leadenhall Street near Leadenhall Market. It was founded in 1280. The present building dates from 1628 to 1630. Formerly a ...
on Leadenhall Street, London was the location of miracle plays from the tenth to the sixteenth century. Edmund Bonner
Edmund Bonner (also Boner; c. 15005 September 1569) was Bishop of London from 1539 to 1549 and again from 1553 to 1559. Initially an instrumental figure in the schism of Henry VIII from Rome, he was antagonised by the Protestant reforms intro ...
, Bishop of London (c 1500 - 1569) stopped this in 1542.
Spanish mystery plays
The (in English, the or ) is a liturgical drama dating from the Middle Ages which has been enacted and celebrated every year without any known interruptions. Commemorating the Assumption of Mary, it is played on every 14 and 15 August in the Basilica de Santa María in the city of Elx
Elche ( ca-valencia, Elx) is a city and municipality of Spain, belonging to the province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. According to 2014 data, Elche has a population of 228,647 inhabitants,[Elche
Elche ( ca-valencia, Elx) is a city and municipality of Spain, belonging to the province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. According to 2014 data, Elche has a population of 228,647 inhabitants,][Council of Trent
The Council of Trent ( la, Concilium Tridentinum), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trento, Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italian Peninsula, Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation ...]
eventually threatened to interrupt the yearly performance of the Misteri, but in 1632 Pope Urban VIII
Pope Urban VIII ( la, Urbanus VIII; it, Urbano VIII; baptised 5 April 1568 – 29 July 1644), born Maffeo Vincenzo Barberini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 August 1623 to his death in July 1644. As po ...
issued a special permit for its continuation. In 2001, UNESCO declared it one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.
The oldest liturgical drama (12th century) written already in old Spanish language was a codex
The codex (plural codices ) was the historical ancestor of the modern book. Instead of being composed of sheets of paper, it used sheets of vellum, papyrus, or other materials. The term ''codex'' is often used for ancient manuscript books, with ...
found in the library of the Toledo Cathedral
, native_name_lang =
, image = Toledo Cathedral, from Plaza del Ayuntamiento.jpg
, imagesize = 300px
, imagelink =
, imagealt =
, landscape =
, caption ...
. The Auto de los Reyes Magos belongs to the Christmas cycle. It is a play about the Biblical Magi
The biblical Magi from Middle Persian ''moɣ''(''mard'') from Old Persian ''magu-'' 'Zoroastrian clergyman' ( or ; singular: ), also referred to as the (Three) Wise Men or (Three) Kings, also the Three Magi were distinguished foreigners in the G ...
, three wise men from the East who followed a star and visited the baby Jesus in Bethlehem
Bethlehem (; ar, بيت لحم ; he, בֵּית לֶחֶם '' '') is a city in the central West Bank, Palestine, about south of Jerusalem. Its population is approximately 25,000,Amara, 1999p. 18.Brynen, 2000p. 202. and it is the capital o ...
. It is believed to have been based on an earlier liturgical Latin play written in France.
Miracle play
Miracle plays, or ''Saint's plays,'' are now distinguished from mystery plays as they specifically re-enacted miraculous interventions by the saint
In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...
s, particularly St. Nicholas
Saint Nicholas of Myra, ; la, Sanctus Nicolaus (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greek descent from the maritime city of Myra in Asia Minor (; modern-day Demre ...
or St. Mary
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...
, into the lives of ordinary people, rather than biblical events; however both of these terms are more commonly used by modern scholars than they were by medieval people, who used a wide variety of terminology to refer to their dramatic performances. Robert Chambers, writing in the 19th century, notes that "especially in England, miracle ame #REDIRECT AME #REDIRECT AME
{{redirect category shell, {{R from other capitalisation{{R from ambiguous page ...
{{redirect category shell, {{R from other capitalisation{{R from ambiguous page ...
to stand for religious play in general".
Cornish language
Cornish (Standard Written Form: or ) , is a Southwestern Brittonic language, Southwestern Brittonic language of the Celtic language family. It is a List of revived languages, revived language, having become Extinct language, extinct as a livin ...
miracle plays were performed in
plain-an-gwarrys.
To capture the attention of the audience, "the plays were often noisy, bawdy and entertaining".
[''St Just Plain-an-Gwarry''.]
Historic Cornwall. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
Modern performances
Mystery plays are still produced regularly throughout the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
. The local cycles were revived in both
York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
and
Chester
Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
in 1951 as part of the
Festival of Britain
The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition and fair that reached millions of visitors throughout the United Kingdom in the summer of 1951. Historian Kenneth O. Morgan says the Festival was a "triumphant success" during which people:
...
, and are still performed by the local guilds. The N-Town cycle was revived in 1978 as the
Lincoln mystery plays
The Lincoln Mystery Plays are modern performances of medieval mystery plays and other productions in Lincoln Cathedral and the surrounding area.
Background
The Lincoln Mystery Plays are based on the N-Town Plays and were inspired by Keith Rams ...
,
and in 1994 the
Lichfield
Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west of B ...
Mysteries were revived (now the biggest community theatre event in the United Kingdom).
In 1977 the
National Theatre commissioned
Tony Harrison
Tony Harrison (born 30 April 1937) is an English poet, translator and playwright. He was born in Beeston, Leeds and he received his education in Classics from Leeds Grammar School and Leeds University. He is one of Britain's foremost verse w ...
to create ''
The Mysteries
''The Mysteries'' is a version of the medieval English mystery plays first presented at London's National Theatre in 1977. The cycle of three plays tells the story of the Bible from the creation to the last judgement.
Background
It is based lar ...
'', a re-working of the
Wakefield Cycle
The Wakefield or Towneley Mystery Plays are a series of thirty-two mystery plays based on the Bible most likely performed around the Feast of Corpus Christi probably in the town of Wakefield, England during the Late Middle Ages until 1576. It is o ...
and others. It was revived in 1985 (whereupon the production was filmed for
Channel 4 Television
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service i ...
), and again as a part of the theatre's millennium celebration in 2000. The productions won
Bill Bryden the "Best Director" title in both the
1985 ''Evening Standard'' Theatre Awards and the
1985 Laurence Olivier Awards
The 1985 Laurence Olivier Awards were presented by the Society of London Theatre in 1985 at the Dominion Theatre in London, celebrating excellence in West End theatre. It was broadcast by BBC Television, though the broadcast date and specific BB ...
, the year the three plays first appeared together in performance at the
Lyceum Theatre. An adaptation of Harrison's play was staged at
Shakespeare's Globe
Shakespeare's Globe is a reconstruction of the Globe Theatre, an Elizabethan playhouse for which William Shakespeare wrote his plays, in the London Borough of Southwark, on the south bank of the River Thames. The original theatre was built in ...
in 2011 as ''The Globe Mysteries''.
In 2001, the
Isango Ensemble
The Isango Ensemble (''isango'' meaning "gate" or "port" or "gateway" in Xhosa and Zulu) is a Cape Town-based theatre company led by director Mark Dornford-May and music directors Pauline Malefane and Mandisi Dyantyis. It was established in 2000, ...
produced an African version of the Chester Cycle at the
Garrick Theatre in London as ''The Mysteries – Yiimimangaliso'', performing in a combination of the
Xhosa language
Xhosa (, ) also isiXhosa as an endonym, is a Nguni language and one of the official languages of South Africa and Zimbabwe. Xhosa is spoken as a first language by approximately 8.2 million people and by another 11 million as a second ...
, the
Zulu language
Zulu (), or isiZulu as an endonym, is a Southern Bantu language of the Nguni branch spoken in Southern Africa. It is the language of the Zulu people, with about 12 million native speakers, who primarily inhabit the province of KwaZulu-Natal o ...
, English,
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
and
Afrikaans
Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gra ...
. They revived an adapted version of the production at Shakespeare's Globe in 2015 as ''The Mysteries''. In 2004, two mystery plays (one focusing on the Creation and the other on the Passion) were performed at Canterbury Cathedral, with actor
Edward Woodward
Edward Albert Arthur Woodward, OBE (1 June 1930 – 16 November 2009) was an English actor and singer. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he began his career on stage. Throughout his career, he appeared in productions ...
in the role of God. The large cast also included
Daniel MacPherson,
Thomas James Longley
Thomas James Longley (born 22 April 1989)''England & Wales, Birth Index: 1984–2005'' is an English actor and model.
Career
In 2004, Longley achieved acclaim from ''The Times'' for his performance as Gabriel in a widely publicised revival of ' ...
and
Joseph McManners
Joseph McManners (born 3 December 1992) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and actor.
Personal life
McManners is the son of musician and writer Hugh McManners and Deborah McManners.Interview from thLimited Edition Japanese DVD releaseo ...
.
[BBC News]
Revival of Medieval Mystery Plays
Thursday, 5 August 2004,
See also
*
Biblical Magi
The biblical Magi from Middle Persian ''moɣ''(''mard'') from Old Persian ''magu-'' 'Zoroastrian clergyman' ( or ; singular: ), also referred to as the (Three) Wise Men or (Three) Kings, also the Three Magi were distinguished foreigners in the G ...
*
Chester Mystery Plays
*
Easter Drama
An Easter Drama is a liturgical drama or religious theatrical performance in the Roman Catholic tradition, largely limited to the Middle Ages. These performances evolved from celebrations of the liturgy to incorporate later dramatic and secular e ...
*
Lincoln Mystery Plays
The Lincoln Mystery Plays are modern performances of medieval mystery plays and other productions in Lincoln Cathedral and the surrounding area.
Background
The Lincoln Mystery Plays are based on the N-Town Plays and were inspired by Keith Rams ...
*
Liturgical drama
Liturgical drama refers to medieval forms of dramatic performance that use stories from the Bible or Christian hagiography.
The term was widely disseminated by well-known theater historians like Heinrich Alt (''Theater und Kirche'', 1846), E.K. C ...
*
Medieval theatre
*''
Mistero Buffo''
*
Morality play - evolved from mystery plays
*
Nativity play
*
Passion play
*
Wakefield Mystery Plays
The Wakefield or Towneley Mystery Plays are a series of thirty-two mystery plays based on the Bible most likely performed around the Feast of Corpus Christi probably in the town of Wakefield, England during the Late Middle Ages until 1576. It is o ...
- a collection of thirty-two mystery plays performed in medieval and early Renaissance England.
*
York Mystery Plays
The York Mystery Plays, more properly the York Corpus Christi Plays, are a Middle English cycle of 48 mystery plays or pageants covering sacred history from the creation to the Last Judgment. They were traditionally presented on the feast day ...
- a collection of forty-eight mystery plays
References
* Anderson Magalhães, ''Le'' Comédies bibliques ''di Margherita di Navarra, tra evangelismo e mistero medievale'', in ''La mujer: de los bastidores al proscenio en el teatro del siglo XVI'', ed. de I. Romera Pintor y J. L. Sirera, Valencia, Publicacions de la Universitat de València, 2011, pp. 171–201.
External links
The Official Lincoln Mystery Plays WebsiteThe Official Chester Mystery Plays Websiteat Victoria University of the University of Toronto
The York Mystery plays2002 and 2006 York Mystery Plays2012 Lincoln Mystery PlaysA simulator of the progress of the pageants in the York Mystery playsThe Lichfield Mysteries
Medieval Imaginations: literature and visual culture in the Middle AgesTewkesbury's Millennia of Mummers' Heritage kept alive - United Kingdom
* Texts:
** The Towneley (Wakefield) Cycle in Middle English. Available fro
Michigano
Virginia** The York Cycle in Middle English. Available fro
Michigano
Virginia
*
modernised by Chester N. Scoville and Kimberley M. Yates
*
modernised by Stanley J. Kahrl and Alexandra F. Johnston
*
The Chester Cyclein middle English
*
{{Authority control
Christian plays
Drama
Cultural depictions of Herod the Great
Medieval literature
Theatre in the United Kingdom
Medieval drama
Religious vernacular drama
Theatrical genres