Proposal

   Our research topic is Medieval Church Drama/Theatre which is a heavily broad topic, and so we as a group tried to condense it down to a specific time period. At first we chose to go with the late 15th century, and decided that we would spend the rest of our time finding possible plays to focus on. We came across the N-Town plays and had trouble researching as to what they were, who they were written by, and when they were written. We struggled with delving into the specifics of how these plays existed, and always ended up in a dead end. So, we consulted with our instructors as to why we were having such troubles, and came to the realization that the N-town plays are one of four cycle plays done approximately in the 15th century. These four major extant mystery cycles are: the plays of York, Chester, Wakefield, and N-town. The N-town plays just happen to be the most mysterious of all the cycle plays. There is little evidence to show who they were written/interpreted by, and when they were written.

   This brought light into why we were having such a hard time researching them, because very little is known about them. In fact, it's impossible to do any sort of presentation that would deeply explain the nature of the N-town plays. So, we had a decision to make: 1. Choose any of the other three cycle plays, because there is way more information on those that we can grapple with...or 2. We choose to stick wight the N-town plays and research about why it's so hard to find legitimate information on them. We decided to go with the second option. 

   We want to know why the N-town plays are called the "N-town" plays, what does "N-town" mean? How come so little is known about them? How can we compare the other cycle plays in relation to N-town plays so that we may further understand their dramatic structure? How were they staged? These are all questions that we need to grapple with so that we may teach our findings to our peers. 

   We have found that at the beginning of this period, the church was heavily involved in regulating all aspects of theatre. Theater was considered the devils work, so the only plays that were performed were ones that showed biblical stories. These plays were also only performed inside the church. As this period progressed and started to move towards the Renaissance period, the church became less involved, giving more freedom to the playwrights at the time. Plays were performed outside in the churchyard, and then were able to be performed on the streets. There would frequently be moving wagons that could set up and perform almost anywhere.
 
   By the end of this process, we hope to have a better understanding of the structure, nature, and influence of the cycle plays, and N-town plays specifically. 

Sources:

Alexandrina, Iotheca, Compiled By Hadir Ashraf & Manar Badr, and 1. "Medieval Drama." Medieval Drama (n.d.): n. pag. Bibliotheca Alexandrina. Web

Davidson, Clifford, C. J. Gianakaris, and John H. Stroupe. Narrative Bible Cycles in Medieval Art and Drama. The Drama of the Middle Ages: Comparative and Critical Essays. New York, NY: AMS, 1982. 118-36. Print

Fitzhenry, William. “The N-Town Plays and the Politics of Metatheatre.” Studies in                    Philology 100.1 (Winter 2003): 22-43. Print.

Ogden, Dunbar H. The Staging of Drama in the Medieval Church. Newark, DE: U of Delaware, 2002. Print.

Taylor, Jerome, and Alan H. Nelson. Medieval English Drama; Essays Critical And Contextual. Ed. Jerome Taylor And Alan H. Nelson. n.p. Chicago, University of  Chicago Press, 1972. Print.