Description
Book SynopsisProvides fresh perspectives on the early modern public as an audience trained by theatre. Focusing on the period 1642–1660, it offers a new take on the public of the English Revolution and fills in important blanks in the history of the English stage for theatre and literary scholars and historians.
Trade Review'… this well-written book is a [must-read] to anyone interested in early modern theatricality, the English public, the Interregnum and their interactions.' Sonja Kleij, English
'… the arguments at the heart of Theatre and the English Public are convincing, and the book as a whole successfully reframes debates about the relationship between theater and its publics.' Gavin Hollis, Renaissance Quarterly
Table of ContentsPrologue: theatre, theatricality and the public in early modern England; 1. Styles of the stage: addressing the public in the post-reformation period; 2. From audience to public: theatre, theatricality and the people before the Civil Wars; 3. Public performances: strategies of theatricality during the interregnum; 4. Playing with prohibition: discourses of theatre during the interregnum; Epilogue: theatre and the English public beyond the Restoration.
