Introduction

The period from the mid-1970s to the present day has seen exponential advances in our appreciation and understanding of early drama. This progress was driven by the optimism, intellectual excitement, and commitment of several generations of scholars and practitioners with a mission to show how plays traditionally margin-alised by terms such as ‘pre-Shakespearian’ could be re-imagined through close attention to their historical context, to the pragmatics of performance, their documentary traces, and their comparability across different national and chronological traditions. As a scholar who also has experience of acting and of production, Carpenter is particularly sensitive to the implications of location for creating meaning and generating audience reaction. The emphasis falls on the Scottish court, and the book thus makes a distinct and distinctive contribution to the field, complementing the largely English focus elsewhere in early drama studies.