Music, Dance, and Drama in Early Modern English Schools

The book "Music, Dance, and Drama in Early Modern English Schools" explores the role of performing arts in English schools after the Reformation, combining archival research with phenomenological and performance studies approaches to provide fresh perspectives on canonical operas and lesser-known works. It also interrogates the notion of performance as ephemeral and demonstrates how pedagogical performance is passed down through embodied praxis.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 260 pages
Publication date: 23 June 2022
Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Music, dance, and drama played a significant role in English schools after the Reformation, and this groundbreaking book is the first to systematically analyze their impact. Despite the gaps in the material record, author Amanda Eubanks Winkler employs an innovative methodology that combines rigorous archival research with phenomenological and performance studies approaches to shed light on the subject. Organized around a series of performance-based questions, the study explores how the schoolroom intersected with various institutions such as the church, court, domicile, concert room, and professional theater. This approach offers fresh perspectives on well-known canonical operas performed by children as well as lesser-known works. Furthermore, Eubanks Winkler challenges the notion of performance as fleeting by examining how scores and playtexts serve as a bridge between the past and present. She also demonstrates how pedagogical performance is transmitted through embodied praxis, highlighting the enduring influence of the performing arts in English schools.

Music, dance, and drama played a significant role in English schools after the Reformation, and this groundbreaking book is the first to systematically analyze their impact. Despite the gaps in the material record, author Amanda Eubanks Winkler employs an innovative methodology that combines rigorous archival research with phenomenological and performance studies approaches to shed light on the subject. Organized around a series of performance-based questions, the study explores how the schoolroom intersected with various institutions such as the church, court, domicile, concert room, and professional theater. This approach offers fresh perspectives on well-known canonical operas performed by children as well as lesser-known works. Furthermore, Eubanks Winkler challenges the notion of performance as fleeting by examining how scores and playtexts serve as a bridge between the past and present. She also demonstrates how pedagogical performance is transmitted through embodied praxis, highlighting the enduring influence of the performing arts in English schools.

ISBN-13: 9781108796507