Theater, Culture, and Community in Reformation Bern, 1523-1555 (Studies in Medieval and Reformation Traditions) (Studies in Medieval and Reformation Traditions)

This study examines the sociocultural context of ten plays, including 15 song texts, performed during the formative years of the Bernese Reformation. It treats not only three pre-reform carnival plays by Niklaus Manuel, but also six newly edited works by local court secretary Hans von Rute. Contents 8 Preface and Acknowledgements 10 Illustrations 14 Abbreviations 58 Chapter One: Performing the Protestant Reformation 60 a. Theater and Reformation in Bern 65 b. The Stage as Pulpit: Reformers on Theater 74 c. Enacting Community 90 Chapter Two: Bern at the Crossroads of Reform 101 a. Bern, Swiss Protestantism, and the Helvetian Confederacy 103 b. Literature and the Arts 117 c. Plays and Playwrights 126 Chapter Three: Protestant Carnival: A Contradiction in Terms? 138 a. Transgression, Politics, and Religion 143 b. Niklaus Manuel and Bernese Carnival before 1528 149 c. Reformation Theology and Carnival 172 d. Post-Reformation Carnival in Bern (1530–1534) 176 Chapter Four: Theocracy and Theater 194 a. Piety and Patriarchy 199 b. The Armor of Faith: Goliath (1535, 1545, 1555) 207 c. "Pious on account of good works": Potiphar's Wife in Joseph (1538) 216 d. Revolt, Order, and Iconoclasm in Gedeon (1540) 225 e. "That it be told every instant": Bearing Witness in Noe (1546) 235 f. "Un-Luther Characters": Confessionalism in Osterspiel (1552) 245 Chapter Five: Protestant Visual Culture and the Stage 260 a. Niklaus Manuel: From Painter to Playwright 264 b. Protestant Theater as Visual Medium 273 c. Theater as Broadsheet 281 d. Theater as Merkbild 296 Chapter Six: Music, Play, and Worship 306 a. Zwingli, Bern, and the Music of Swiss Protestantism 309 b. The Choral Interludes of Renaissance Theater 321 c. The Music of Bernese Reformation Drama 325 Chapter Seven: Mediating Change 348 Appendix: Song Texts 356 Bibliography 366 Index of Persons 392 A 392 B 392 C 392 D 393 E 393 F 393 G 393 H 393 J 394 K 394 L 394 M 394 N 395 O 395 P 395 R 395 S 396 T 396 U 396 V 396 W 396 Z 397 Index of Places 398 A 398 B 398 C 399 D 399 E 399 F 399 G 399 H 399 I 399 K 399 L 399 M 399 N 399 O 399 P 399 R 399 S 399 T 400 U 400 V 400 W 400 Z 400 Index of Subjects 401 A 401 B 401 C 401 D 402 E 402 F 402 G 402 H 402 I 402 J 402 K 402 L 402 M 402 N 403 O 403 P 403 R 404 S 404 T 404 U 404 V 404 W 405 Z 405 Index of Biblical Citations 406 "This study examines the sociocultural context of ten plays performed during the formative years of the Bernese Reformation. It treats not only three pre-reform carnival plays by Niklaus Manuel, but also six newly edited works by local court secretary Hans von Rute." "Individual chapters focus on the plays' polemics, staging, and choruses, as well as on local Zwinglian reform. An appendix contains the plays' fifteen song texts." "The vivid staging and choral interludes of Bern's Reformation theater belie the assumption that the city's Zwinglian reform, which eliminated imagery and song from religious worship, rejected images and music in all forms. The confessional diatribe of Rute's later works further illuminates Bern's policies towards Zurich and Geneva, demonstrating that biblical plays were no less political than their carnival predecessors."--BOOK JACKET.

This study examines the sociocultural context of ten plays performed during the formative years of the Bernese Reformation. It treats not only three pre-reform carnival plays by Niklaus Manuel, but also six newly edited works by local court secretary Hans von Rüte.
Individual chapters focus on the plays’ polemics, staging, and choruses, as well as on local Zwinglian reform. An appendix contains the plays’ fifteen song texts.
The vivid staging and choral interludes of Bern’s Reformation theater belie the assumption that the city’s Zwinglian reform, which eliminated imagery and song from religious worship, rejected images and music in all forms. The confessional diatribe of Rüte’s later works further illuminates Bern’s policies towards Zurich and Geneva, demonstrating that biblical plays were no less political than their carnival predecessors.

Annotation This study examines the sociocultural context of ten plays performed during the formative years of the Bernese Reformation. It treats not only three pre-reform carnival plays by Niklaus Manuel, but also six newly edited works by local court secretary Hans von R te. Individual chapters focus on the plays' polemics, staging, and choruses, as well as on local Zwinglian reform. An appendix contains the plays' fifteen song texts. The vivid staging and choral interludes of Bern's Reformation theater belie the assumption that the city's Zwinglian reform, which eliminated imagery and song from religious worship, rejected images and music in all forms. The confessional diatribe of R te's later works further illuminates Bern's policies towards Zurich and Geneva, demonstrating that biblical plays were no less political than their carnival predecessors