Tristram de Lyons: Difference between revisions
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==Historical Records==
==Historical Records==


<Reproduce relevant documentary evidence from historical records here. (For example, entries from Henslowe's Diary).>
===''Henslowe's Diary''===
[[category:Henslowe's records]]
<br>
 
'''F. 64<sup>v</sup> ([http://www.archive.org/stream/henslowesdiary00unkngoog#page/n172/mode/1up Greg, I.112])'''
<br>


::::: the 13<sup>th</sup> of october 1599
:Lent vnto Thomas Downton for the
:Booke of Trystram de Lyons ..……………… 3<sup>li</sup>


<br><br>


==Theatrical Provenance==
==Theatrical Provenance==


<Enter information about which company performed the play, and where/when it was performed, etc.>
The Admiral's players paid Thomas Downton, one of their players and sharers, £3 for the playbook of "Tristram de Lyons" on the 13th of October 1599. In the fall of 1599, the company was in its last year at the Rose; it would move to the new Fortune playhouse in Middlesex at the end of the summer of 1600.
 




==Probable Genre(s)==
==Probable Genre(s)==
 
<br>
<List possible genres of the play: if noted by a critic, cite them, e.g. "Comedy (Harbage)". If an original speculation, simply list the genre.>
Romance (Harbage)






==Possible Narrative and Dramatic Sources or Analogues==
==Possible Narrative and Dramatic Sources or Analogues==
 
<br>
<Enter any information about possible or known sources. Summarise these sources where practical/possible, or provide an excerpt from another scholar's discussion of the subject if available.>
Entered in the Stationers Register by Thomas Gosson and John Danter, 20 Jan 1595/96 ([http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/digital/collections/cul/texts/ldpd_6177070_003/pages/ldpd_6177070_003_00000059.html?toggle=image&menu=maximize&top=&left= ''Clio'', S.R.I, 3.57]):
:Entred for their Copie vnder th[e h]andes of bothe the wardens a
:booke intituled. ''The ffirste part of the famous histories of CHINAN of''
:''England'' . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vj<sup>d</sup>  




The text in question is Christopher Middleton's ''The famous historie of Chinon of England with his strange aduentures for the loue of Celestina daughter to Lewis King of Fraunce. VVith the worthy atchiuement of Sir Lancelot du Lake, and Sir Tristram du Lions for fair Laura, daughter to Cador Earle of Cornewall, beeing all knights of King Arthurs round table'' (1597).
<br><br>


==References to the Play==
==References to the Play==
<br>
None known.
<br><br>


<List any known or conjectured references to the lost play here.>
==Critical Commentary==
 
<br>
 


==Critical Commentary==
'''Greg''' did not refer to the Middleton narrative as a source for the Tristram narrative, noting instead that "[n]othing whatever is known of this piece" ([http://www.archive.org/stream/henslowesdiary02hensuoft#page/206/mode/1up Greg, II.206, Item : 184]).
<br>
<br>


'''Knutson''' observes that ''The Famous Historie of Chinon of England'' by Christopher Middleton (S. R. 20 Jan 1596, Q1597) carries a sub-title that names Tristram of Lyons: "With the worthy Atchieuement of Sir Lancelot du Lake, and Sir Tristram du Lions for faire Laura." She notes that the Admiral's players had performed "Chinon of England" in 1596, positing that the publication of Middleton's ''Chinon'' was "a bit late for the debut of "Chinon" on January 3, 1596, but it was perfect timing for a spin-off on Tristrm in 1599-1600" (29).
'''Knutson''' observes that ''The Famous Historie of Chinon of England'' by Christopher Middleton (S. R. 20 Jan 1596, Q1597) carries a sub-title that names Tristram of Lyons: "With the worthy Atchieuement of Sir Lancelot du Lake, and Sir Tristram du Lions for faire Laura." She notes that the Admiral's players had performed "Chinon of England" in 1596, positing that the publication of Middleton's ''Chinon'' was "a bit late for the debut of "Chinon" on January 3, 1596, but it was perfect timing for a spin-off on Tristrm in 1599-1600" ("Toe" 29).
<br><br>
<br><br>


==For What It's Worth==
==For What It's Worth==
 
<br>
<Enter any miscellaneous points that may be relevant, but don't fit into the above categories. This is the best place for highly conjectural thoughts.>
Following Greg and Chambers, who note that sums lower than £5 in Henslowe's payments for plays raise questions about whether the plays were completed or new, Knutson categorizes "Tristram de Lyons" as completed but possibly secondhand ("Commercial" 119, 160).
 
<br><br>




==Works Cited==
==Works Cited==


<div style="padding-left: 2em; text-indent: -2em">Knutson, Roslyn L. “Toe to Toe Across Maid Lane:&nbsp;: Repertorial Competition at the Rose and Globe, 1599-1600,” in June Schlueter and Paul Nelsen (eds) ''Acts of Criticism: Performance Matters in Shakespeare and His Contemporaries'' (Madison &amp; Teaneck: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2005), 21-37. </div>
<div style="padding-left: 2em; text-indent: -2em">Knutson, Roslyn L. "Commercial
<div style="padding-left: 2em; text-indent: -2em">— — — “Toe to Toe Across Maid Lane:&nbsp;: Repertorial Competition at the Rose and Globe, 1599-1600,” in June Schlueter and Paul Nelsen (eds) ''Acts of Criticism: Performance Matters in Shakespeare and His Contemporaries'' (Madison &amp; Teaneck: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2005), 21-37. </div>




Revision as of 16:48, 1 March 2013

Anon. (1599)


Historical Records

Henslowe's Diary


F. 64v (Greg, I.112)

the 13th of october 1599
Lent vnto Thomas Downton for the
Booke of Trystram de Lyons ..……………… 3li



Theatrical Provenance

The Admiral's players paid Thomas Downton, one of their players and sharers, £3 for the playbook of "Tristram de Lyons" on the 13th of October 1599. In the fall of 1599, the company was in its last year at the Rose; it would move to the new Fortune playhouse in Middlesex at the end of the summer of 1600.


Probable Genre(s)


Romance (Harbage)


Possible Narrative and Dramatic Sources or Analogues


Entered in the Stationers Register by Thomas Gosson and John Danter, 20 Jan 1595/96 (Clio, S.R.I, 3.57):

Entred for their Copie vnder th[e h]andes of bothe the wardens a
booke intituled. The ffirste part of the famous histories of CHINAN of
England . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vjd


The text in question is Christopher Middleton's The famous historie of Chinon of England with his strange aduentures for the loue of Celestina daughter to Lewis King of Fraunce. VVith the worthy atchiuement of Sir Lancelot du Lake, and Sir Tristram du Lions for fair Laura, daughter to Cador Earle of Cornewall, beeing all knights of King Arthurs round table (1597).

References to the Play


None known.

Critical Commentary


Greg did not refer to the Middleton narrative as a source for the Tristram narrative, noting instead that "[n]othing whatever is known of this piece" (Greg, II.206, Item : 184).

Knutson observes that The Famous Historie of Chinon of England by Christopher Middleton (S. R. 20 Jan 1596, Q1597) carries a sub-title that names Tristram of Lyons: "With the worthy Atchieuement of Sir Lancelot du Lake, and Sir Tristram du Lions for faire Laura." She notes that the Admiral's players had performed "Chinon of England" in 1596, positing that the publication of Middleton's Chinon was "a bit late for the debut of "Chinon" on January 3, 1596, but it was perfect timing for a spin-off on Tristrm in 1599-1600" ("Toe" 29).

For What It's Worth


Following Greg and Chambers, who note that sums lower than £5 in Henslowe's payments for plays raise questions about whether the plays were completed or new, Knutson categorizes "Tristram de Lyons" as completed but possibly secondhand ("Commercial" 119, 160).


Works Cited

Knutson, Roslyn L. "Commercial
— — — “Toe to Toe Across Maid Lane: : Repertorial Competition at the Rose and Globe, 1599-1600,” in June Schlueter and Paul Nelsen (eds) Acts of Criticism: Performance Matters in Shakespeare and His Contemporaries (Madison & Teaneck: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2005), 21-37.


Site created and maintained by Roslyn L. Knutson, Professsor Emerita, University of Arkansas at Little Rock; updated 1 March 2013.