Core Origins Of The Latin Passion Play example essay topic

"The Latin Passion Play: Its Origins and Development" Written by Sandro Sticca A book report by Desi Moreno-Person Wednesday, October 27, 1999 Professor Benito Ortolan i Theater History Introduction: The Latin Passion Play: Its Origins and Development by Professor Sandro Sticca (State University of New York Press, 1970) is an engaging account which examines the medieval liturgical ceremonies observing the events in Christ's Passion and traces their continuous change in character from the contemplative and thoughtful to the dramatic. Professor Sticca manages to present in this comprehensive body of work some important points. The first point being Christ's Passion becoming an ever-widening and intensive motif as one of the sacred mysteries beginning in the tenth century. Also, there were many new constraints, which allowed a more stylish and expressive form of visualization and description of Christ's Anguish, which would appear in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. In the course of this investigation, Professor Sticca cites many varied examples from the treatises and works of many other important and influential historians. These works include: The History of the Greek and Roman Theatre by Margaret Bieber, The Irresistible Theatre by W. Bridges-Adams, and The Drama of the Medieval Church by Karl Young, among many others.

I will, in all likelihood, make use of one or more of their axioms and premeditated conjectures in order to present a more sound conspectus of Professor Sticca's disquisition. According to Professor Sticca, the origin of the medieval drama was in religion. From the epoch of the early centuries, the church held an extremely stern and forbidding view of theatrical presentations, which was broadly considered to be licentious representations of decadent paganism. But once this "immoral" theatre had disappeared, at least according to the dictates of the time, the Church allowed and itself contributed to the gradual development of a new drama, which in their view, was not only moral, but edifying and pious. On certain solemn feasts, such as Easter and Christmas, the Office was interrupted, and the priests represented, in the presence of those assisting, the religious event that was being celebrated. Professor Sticca has ascertained that the core origins of the Latin Passion Play was a creation of the Montecassino monastic circle which was inspired by the liturgical services of Good Friday and the Gospel accounts.

At first, the text of this liturgical drama was very brief and was taken solely from the Gospel or the Office of the day. It is important to remember that it was written in prose and in Latin. But by gradual degrees, versification would slowly creep in. Soon, verse would pervade the entire drama, prose would become the exception and the vernacular would appear beside Latin.

Thus, to use a brief example, in the French drama of the "Wise Virgins" (first half of the twelfth century) which does little more than depict the Gospel parable of the wise and foolish virgins, the chorus employs Latin, while Christ and the virgins use both Latin and French. The angel speaks only in French here. Once the vernacular had completely supplanted the Latin, and individual inventiveness had at the same time asserted itself, the drama would leave the precincts of the Church and cease to be liturgical without, however, losing its religious character. According to Professor Sticca, this evolution would seem to have been accomplished at around the twelfth century, at the time of the Montecassino Codex.

With the appearance of the vernacular, a development of the drama along more secular and national lines would inevitably become possible. Brief Summary of Contents: Professor Sticca cites many different points in all the chapters of his treatise to further emphasize his hypothesis. In the first two chapters (Classical Heritage and the Liturgical Drama and The Origin of the Latin Passion Play) he gives possible causation for the origin of medieval theatre by his exposition on "Commedia Elegiac a" explaining that in the history of dramatic art, particular importance has been attributed to this literary genre which was first developed during the twelfth century. This is especially true in France, and has been thought to influence the developing medieval theatre. He goes on to say that although these Latin compositions are completely lacking in dramatic structure, they were written neatly in anatomical verse treating comical or familiar subjects. (Most well known of these is the twelfth-century Get, known also as the Amphitryon and the Aulularia of Vitalis Ble sensis, which "are not so much plays but rather narrative comedies").

Unlike Vitalis, the Benedictine nun of Ganders heim, Hrotswitha would provide far more edifying versions of what was considered "immoral" comedies, .".. and these tales would draw for their themes mostly on the plays of the Roman playwright, Terence". (Sister Mary Marguerite Butler, Hrotswitha: the Theatricality of Her Plays, New York, 1960, p. 84) But Professor Sticca makes it very clear that in his opinion, and in spite of their pre-liturgical significance, these compositions were merely academic and lettered exercises without any credible relationship with scenic representation. He agrees with the analytic conclusion of Margaret Bieber, who states that "With the disappearance of the classical dramatic tradition, and of concepts of tragedies and comedies, the men of the Middle Ages began to fashion a kind of theatrical mimesis that relied for expression on long dialogue and on pantomimic representation. These elements, however, do not constitute dramatic representation, nor do they imply the perpetuation of the classical dramatic tradition". (The History of the Greek and Roman Theatre, Princeton, 1961, p. 254) In regards to this and other explanations, Professor Sticca stresses fully that the true origin of modern drama must be found in the development of the medieval theatre, which is a creation of the church. (Timothy Fry, "The Alleged Influence of Pagan Ritual on the Formation of The Mystery Plays", American Benedictine Review 9 (1958-59), 187-201, p. 196) According to Professor Sticca; action, impersonation, and dialogue, being the true and main components of drama, appear in the Roman liturgy, which provided during the liturgical year all kinds of antiphonal responses between a cantor and the Chorus, or between two alternating Choruses.

The liturgy made provisions for "symbolic action, gesture, and there were also present the elements of impersonation, and in the allocation or assignment of parts and / or roles in the service". (Hardin Craig, English Religious Drama. Oxford, At the Clarendon Press, 1955, p. 253) He cites the research of Karl Young, who emphasizes the importance of impersonation as the essential ingredient of drama, yet also recognizes that, "The Roman liturgy is abundantly dramatic and the Mass, along with the Canonical Office may have contributed suggestions as to the possibility of inventing drama, and may have indirectly encouraged it". (The Drama of the Medieval Church, Oxford, 1933, p. 178) In terms of the Montecassino Codex, which is the main point of convergence for Professor Sticca's dissertation, (especially in chapters, IV, and V - The Tradition of the Latin Passion Play, The Montecassino and Sul mona Passions, and The Liturgical and Vernacular Tradition) he expounds upon what he considers to be the most characteristic activity that developed at the Montecassino monastic circle under the stimulating influence of Byzantine artists, and specifically under the leadership of Desiderius who later became Pope Victor. Beginning in the eleventh century, Montecassino was to become one of the chief centers for the production of South Italian manuscripts, particularly the Exultet Rolls (David Di ringer, The Illuminated Book: Its History and Production, London, 1958, p. 295). In the Liturgy of the Roman Church, these were used in the ceremony of the Blessing of the Paschal Candle on Easter Eve.

Inscribed on a long strip of parchment or vellum, this text was illustrated with illuminated pictures. As the Deacon chanted and unrolled the scroll, the illustrations of the unrolled portion would fall over the back of the podium or ambo before him, allowing the congregation the opportunity to see these illuminations displayed prominently. Professor Sticca accentuates the dramatic significance of the Exultet Rolls, clarifying how the people, as spectators, were given a vivid representation both in scope and in sequential order of the most memorable events in Christ's life; from his birth and ministry to his Passion and Resurrection. Through Byzantine influences at Montecassino, and within its religious domain, Professor Sticca attempts to make a strong correlation between mystical, artistic forces as well as literary trends and attitudes which assisted strongly towards developing a deeper interest both in Christ's suffering and Passion. And according to his research, it would be this burgeoning and artistic revivalist appeal (initiated by abbot Desiderius's reconstruction of the entire Montecassino monastery in the eleventh century) which would produce the proper surroundings in which the first Passion Play could originate early in the twelfth century. In Conclusion: I enjoyed perusing this book and I found most of the critique (especially in the particulars of the origins of The Planctus Marine, the Lauda, and the understanding of the germinal point of religious drama being in the creation of the trope) very interesting and informative.

Unfortunately, in terms of my position as a student to the more complex and intricate factors regarding theatre history, I feel The Latin Passion Play: Its Origins and Development, was an extremely hard read and at times, difficult to sustain my interest. I don't believe this book was written for the student population but for other learned historians of liturgical dramatic history. The most frustrating aspects of this were the large portions of exposition which Professor Sticca included in his treatise which were either in Latin, French, German, or Italian. I am very happy to say that there were a few paragraphs in Spanish that I was able to decipher and thankfully translate.

However, in terms of being able to transcribe any of the sections written in Latin, I'm afraid my Latin-English dictionary, which I purchased from the Brooklyn College BookStore, was of little use. In understanding and being able to visualize the Quem quar itis, I was able to grasp more fully what I was learning and how better to relate it in regards to this report, but I still believe that there is much I missed.