Jesuit drama
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Jesuit drama was a form of theatre practised in the colleges of the
History
In the late 16th and early 17th centuries, Jesuit colleges spread across Europe, and almost all of these presented at least one play each year. The first recorded performance was in 1551, at the
As Jesuit drama expanded, it also evolved, becoming more elaborate. The earliest plays were performed in
Later, performances were frequently given in the vernacular, and they became important social events in the towns where the colleges were established. By public requests the dramatic representations had often to be staged a second or third time.
As Jesuit drama became more extravagant, these productions were increasingly criticised. These criticisms focused on the cost of the plays and their exaggerated place in the curriculum of certain Jesuit colleges. These criticisms added to the already growing anti-Jesuit sentiment in the 18th century, which resulted in the banning of Jesuit drama in many areas. Performances ceased in 1773, with the suppression of the Society of Jesus, but were revived, after the restoration of the Society in 1814.
Content
Jesuit dramas, as well as instructing students in correct language use and oratory skills, served as a means of instruction in Roman Catholic doctrine and values, for both the students and the audience. The plays were therefore based on accounts from the Bible, or saintly legends.
Most pieces of Jesuit drama contained music of some form. These musical elements were particularly elaborate in Austria and southern Germany, as well as in France where ballet was often included in Jesuit productions.
Examples
- Ambrosia by Edmund Campion
- Histoire tragique de la pucelle de Domrémy by Fronton du Duc
- Sigeris, Tragœdia by Bandino Gualfreducci
- Cenodoxus by Jacob Bidermann
- Hippolito, Edipo and Ermenegildo by Emanuele Tesauro
- Zeno by Joseph Simons
- Sarcotis by Jacob Masen
- Rubenus by Mario Bettinus
- Ermenegildo martire by Francesco Sforza Pallavicino
- Pietas victrix by Nicola Avancini
See also
References
- ^ Harris, Jason Catholicism in Knight & Tilg 2015, pp. 313–328
Sources
- Zanlonghi, Louis J.; Yanitelli, Victor R. (1999). "Jesuit Theater in Italy: Its Entrances and Exit". Italica. 76 (1): 18–32. JSTOR 479800.
- John Gassner and Edward Quinn (eds.), The Reader's Encyclopedia of World Drama (2002)
- Knight, Sarah; Tilg, Stefan, eds. (2015). The Oxford Handbook of Neo-Latin. New York: Oxford University Press. OL 28648475M.
- Ford, Philip, Jan Bloemendal, and Charles Fantazzi, eds. 2014. Brill's Encyclopaedia of the Neo-Latin World. Two vols. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill.
- Moul, Victoria, ed. (2017). A Guide to Neo-Latin Literature. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. OL 29875053M.
- Waquet, Françoise (2001). Latin, or the Empire of a Sign: From the Sixteenth to the Twentieth Centuries. Translated by John Howe. Verso. ISBN 1-85984-402-2.
- Zanlonghi, Giovanna (2006). "The Jesuit Stage and Theatre in Milan during the Eighteenth Century". The Jesuits II. Cultures, Sciences, and the Arts. .