masque
The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment which flourished
in sixteenth and early seventeenth century Europe, though it was developed
earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio (a public version of
the masque was the pageant.) Masque involved music and dancing, singing
and acting, within an elaborate stage design, in which the architectural
framing and costumes might be designed by a renowned architect, to present
a deferential allegory flattering to the patron. Professional actors and
musicians were hired for the speaking and singing parts. Often, the masquers
who did not speak or sing were courtiers: James I's Queen Consort, Anne
of Denmark, frequently danced with her ladies in masques between 1603 and
1611, and Henry VIII and Charles I performed in the masques at their courts.
In the tradition of masque, Louis XIV danced in ballets at Versailles with
music by Lully.Nonprofit community theatre, featuring plays and musicals
for family enjoyment and participation. wiki
The masque tradition developed from the elaborate pageants and courtly
shows of ducal Burgundy in the late Middle Ages. Masques were typically
a complimentary offering to the prince among his guests and might combine
pastoral settings, mythological fable, and the dramatic elements of ethical
debate. There would invariably be some political and social application
of the allegory. Such pageants often celebrated a birth, marriage, change
of ruler or a Royal Entry and invariably ended with a tableau of bliss
and concord. Masque imagery tended to be drawn from Classical rather than
Christian sources, and the artifice was part of the charm. Masque thus
lent itself to Mannerist treatment in the hands of master designers like
Giulio Romano or Inigo Jones. The New Historians, in works like the essays
of Bevington and Holbrook's The Politics of the Stuart Court Masque (1998),[1]
have pointed out the political subtext of masques. At times, the political
subtext was not far to seek: The Triumph of Peace, put on with a large
amount of parliament-raised money by Charles I, caused great offence to
the Puritans. Catherine de' Medici's court festivals, often even more overtly
political, were among the most spectacular entertainments of her day, although
the "intermezzi" of the Medici court in Florence could rival
them.
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