Staging the Revolution : Drama, Reinvention and History, 1647–72

Seeks to reassess the dramatic output of the Commonwealth, Protectorate and early Restoration; a period that has often been marginalised by specialists of both Renaissance and Restoration drama. -- . Staging the revolution offers a reappraisal of the weight and volume of theatrical output during the Commonwealth and early Restoration, both in terms of live performances and performances on the paper stage. It argues that the often-cited notion that 1642 marked an end to theatrical production in England until the playhouses were reopened in 1660 is a product of post-Restoration re-writing of the English civil wars and the representations of royalists and parliamentarians that emerged in the 1640s and 1650s. These retellings of recent events in dramatic form mean that drama is central to civil war discourse. Staging the Revolution examines the ways in which drama was used to rewrite the civil war and commonwealth period and demonstrates that, far from marking a clear cultural demarcation from the theatrical output of the early seventeenth century, the Restoration is constantly reflecting back on the previous thirty years Staging the revolution 5 Copyright 6 Contents 7 List of figures 8 Acknowledgements 9 List of abbreviations 12 A note on dating and on spelling 13 Introduction Of 1647, theatre closure and reinvention 15 1 The paper stage 39 2 Fairs, ghosts, tyranny and usurpation: debating the body politic on the paper stage 66 3 Reinventing the masque: Shirley’s and Davenant’s protectorate entertainments 94 4 Heroic drama on the commonwealth and Restoration stage 131 5 Ideas of panegyric in early Restoration comedy 171 Epilogue Of 1688 and reinventing the past 202 Bibliography 224 Index 251 This Work Reassess The Dramatic Output Of The Commonwealth, Protectorate And Early Restoration; A Period That Has Often Been Marginalised By Specialists Of Both Renaissance And Restoration Drama. The Paper Stage -- Fairs, Ghosts, Tyranny And Usurpation : Debating The Body Politic On The Paper Stage -- Reinventing The Masque : Shirley's And Davenant's Protectorate Entertainments -- Heroic Drama On The Commonwealth And Restorationg Stage -- Ideas Of Panegyric In Early Restoration Comedy. Rachel Willie. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.