Ancient Cornish Drama (Volume Ii)

A rare glimpse into the living rites of medieval Cornwall. It belongs to living theatre. Edwin Norris's The Ancient Cornish Drama (Volume II) presents a carefully assembled historical play anthology of the Cornish mystery plays and allied material, vital to any study of medieval English drama. Written and performed where Celtic tradition met Christian ritual, these pieces survive as both Cornish language texts and as testimony to communal performance: religious pageant scripts shaped by season, village and belief. The edition reads as both an academic reference edition and an accessible medieval literature collection, combining philological care with respect for the original performance impulse. Readers drawn to Celtic folklore literature and the development of early British theatre will find here source material, context and a rare window into traditional Cornwall theatre. Equally useful as a drama students resource and as distinctly evocative reading for anyone curious about faith, community and spectacle in Middle Ages Britain, it balances scholarship and immediacy without academic fog.

Republished by Alpha Editions in a careful modern edition, this volume preserves the spirit of the original while making it effortless to enjoy today - a heritage title prepared for readers and collectors alike. Beyond its immediate pleasures as storytelling and ritual, Norris's compilation has historical weight: it helps map the roots of religious spectacle in Middle Ages Britain and anchors studies of early British theatre and medieval literature collection. Collectors of classic literature will value the volume as a cultural artefact, while newcomers will appreciate a readable bridge from scholarship to performance. Natural-language notes and faithful presentation make it a practical academic reference edition for libraries and a compact drama students resource for performance study. Whether read for research or for the simple joy of old-stage drama, this edition restores a vanished vernacular theatre to contemporary life.