Moore’s Masque

Anon. 1636 (not lost)

Historical Records

F. G. Fleay catalogued Moore's Masque in his Biographical Chronicle of English Drama (2.358):

Acted near Eastgate. Anon. 8. 1636. Moore's Mask. Mr. Moore was one of the six Moors in the Anti-Mask. MS. Exhibited twice in public; once in private for gentlewomen.

Fleay did not divulge the whereabouts of the manuscript in which it survived. Later scholars, including Bentley (5.1375), who catalogued it as The Moor's Masque, could not find the manuscript and therefore categorized it as a lost play. The manuscript is now in print, edited in an article by John R. Elliott, jr. (see Works Cited).

Theatrical Provenance

Amateur; performed in Oxford

Probable Genre(s)

Masque

Possible Narrative and Dramatic Sources or Analogues

See Elliott's edition

References to the Play

None known

Critical Commentary

See "Historical records".

Works Cited

Elliott, John R., jr. "Mr. Moore's Revels: A 'Lost' Oxford Masque", Renaissance Quarterly 37 (1984): 411-420.
Fleay, F. G. A Biographical Chronicle of the English Drama, 1559-1642. London: Reeves and Turner, 1891. Print. Internet Archive

Site created and maintained by Matthew Steggle, Sheffield Hallam University; updated 31 January 2010.