In the popular imagination, drama is the dominant artistic form of the English Renaissance. However, the period in which works by Shakespeare, Marlowe, and Jonson were being written and performed for the public stage was remarkably brief. What cultural, material, and political conditions were conducive to this creative productivity? In what physical and social spaces were the plays staged? This course concentrates on reading Renaissance plays with a theatrical imagination. The aim is to develop an awareness of the living contingencies of their contexts of origin and to consider their legacies in the modern understanding of the term ‘drama’. Playwrights to be studied include Christopher Marlowe, Ben Jonson, William Shakespeare, and Elizabeth Cary.

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Read closely and understand a range of plays from the English Renaissance repertoire.
2. Recognise aspects of dramatic form characteristic of Renaissance drama.
3. Analyse a Renaissance play-text in the light of information about its original context.
4. Experiment with interpreting the dramatic text through staging exercises using clear verbal directions and explanations.
5. Synthesise original analysis with scholarly critique in an extended piece of writing on the subject of Renaissance drama.

2 x 500 word scene analyses (20%) [Learning Outcomes 1, 2]

2000 word (equivalent) presentation of director’s notes/dramaturgical footnote for staging scene (30%) [Learning Outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4]

3000 word workshop-blog participation (10%) revised for journal/essay (30%) [Learning Outcomes 4, 5]

Workshop and lecture participation (10%) [Learning Outcomes 3, 4]

1 x 1 hour lecture and 1 x 2 hour workshop, plus 7 hours of associated study each week.

12 units from English (ENGL) or Drama (DRAM) courses (no performance experience required).

'English Renaissance Drama: A Norton Anthology', David Bevington (ed) 2002.