Category Archives: drama

The Taming of the Shrew’s Connection to “Pride and Prejudice and a Shakespearean Scholar” Excerpt + Giveaway

Posted on December 14, 2017 by Regina Jeffers

One of the main themes in my upcoming release of Pride and Prejudice and a Shakespearean Scholar: A Pride and Prejudice Vagary is the use William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew as a basis of the interaction between Darcy … Continue reading →

Posted in Austen Authors, blog hop, book excerpts, book release, British history, drama, excerpt, film adaptations, Georgian Era, historical fiction, Jane Austen, Living in the Regency, marriage, Pride and Prejudice, Regency era, Regency romance, romance, Vagary | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 25 Comments

The Theatre-Loving Fore-Runners of Shakespeare ~ Part I

Posted on November 3, 2017 by Regina Jeffers

 With the rediscovery of the works of Seneca, Plautus, and Terence, the renaissance of 16th Century England began. First edited in 1308 by an Nicholas Treveth, the tragedian Seneca remained unnoticed for some time by those in England, for Treveth … Continue reading →

Posted in Anglo-Normans, British history, drama, England, kings and queens, medieval, playwrights, theatre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Theatre-Loving Fore-Runners of Shakespeare ~ Part I

Shetland Sword Dance

Posted on August 7, 2017 by Regina Jeffers

 Sir Walter Scott wrote in his diary of the Shetland Sword Dance on 7 August 1814. “At Scalloway my curiosity was gratified by an account of the sword-dance, now almost lost, but still practiced in the Island of Papa…. There … Continue reading →

Posted in Anglo-Normans, Anglo-Saxons, British history, drama, literature, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

John Heywood, England’s First Great Dramatist

Posted on August 3, 2017 by Regina Jeffers

We know little of John Heywood’s life, other than the year of his birth, which was 1497. Likely, he was once served as a choir boy in the Chapel Royale and then studied at Oxford as a King’s Scholar. He … Continue reading →

Posted in Age of Chaucer, British history, drama, kings and queens, playwrights, poetry, political stance, theatre | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Oxfordshire St. George Play

Posted on July 20, 2017 by Regina Jeffers

Closely related to the Morris and Sword Dancers, the Oxfordshire St. George Play is considered a kind of Mummers Play. As well as possessing close elements of kinship, the characters in all these plays are largely interchangeable. That being said, … Continue reading →

Posted in British history, drama, literature, medieval | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

A Gest of Robyn Hode, a Robin Hood Folk Ballad

Posted on June 2, 2017 by Regina Jeffers

In 1560, William Copeland printed the fragments of the various Robin Hood folk dramas. The “plays” were likely performed by mummers and strolling players for a century or more before Copeland printed them. A Gest of Robyn Hode A Gest … Continue reading →

Posted in ballads, British history, Canterbury tales, drama, literature, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

An English Mystery Play: Abraham and Isaac, the Brome Non-Cycle Play

Posted on March 8, 2017 by Regina Jeffers

The sacrifice of Isaac is the basis for six extant Miracle plays. There is also the Coventry cycle of plays, where Isaac submits to his fate. In the Towneley Plays, which are part of the York cycle, Isaac is made … Continue reading →

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Roger Ascham, Serving Four Monarchs

Posted on February 6, 2017 by Regina Jeffers

 Born in Kirby Wiske (a village in the North Riding), Yorkshire, in 1515, Roger Ascham was the third son of John and Margaret Ascham. Ascham was the steward to Baron Scrope of Bolton. Roger Ascham was a scholar and didactic … Continue reading →

Posted in British history, drama, Elizabethan drama, history, legacy, literature, Tudors | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Pre-Elizabethan Drama: The Interlude

Posted on January 24, 2017 by Regina Jeffers

 Pre-Elizabethan drama moved from miracle plays to morality plays to folk plays to interludes. Interludes were the last to develop. Initially, “interludes” were closed identified with morality plays, especially in subject matter.  Precursors to Elizabethan Drama summarizes the development from … Continue reading →

Posted in British history, Chaucer, drama, Elizabethan drama, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Pre-Elizabethan Drama: Folk Plays

Posted on January 6, 2017 by Regina Jeffers

Folk drama is a remote form of oral literature. The early forms included dancers wearing masks portraying animal and human characters. Eventually, speeches and songs were added. The action and the dramatic imitation became the prominent part of these early … Continue reading →

Posted in British history, drama, Great Britain, medieval, religion, theatre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments