ABSTRACT
In October 2021, Beyond Shakespeare performed a ‘playful’ reconstruction of Middleton's Lord Mayor's Show from 1621. This performance of the surviving text of The Sun in Aries moved beyond the stated aims of the company – to produce full audio productions of early English drama – into the realm of site-specific live performance in and around the churchyard of St. Mary-le-Bow in London. In this way, Beyond Shakespeare worked to embody the text, presenting it to, rather than reviving it for, a modern audience. Triumph 1621 represented an effort to re-enliven Middleton's civic pageantry, complete with do-it-yourself mask and costume guides for those attendees who might want ‘to dress up and feel part of the show’. This chapter explores the ephemeral and interactive nature of Triumph 1621, and this modern performance of The Sun in Aries, through a conversation with Beyond Shakespeare's Artistic Director, Robert Crighton.
