Reinterpreting Troilus and Cressida
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REINTERPRETING TROILUS AND CRESSIDA: CHANGING PERCEPTIONS IN LITERARY CRITICISM AND BRITISH PERFORMANCE By JOANNE ELIZABETH BROWN A thesis submitted to the University of Birmingham for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY The Shakespeare Institute School of English, Drama and American & Canadian Studies College of Arts and Law University of Birmingham September 2016 University of Birmingham Research Archive e-theses repository This unpublished thesis/dissertation is copyright of the author and/or third parties. The intellectual property rights of the author or third parties in respect of this work are as defined by The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 or as modified by any successor legislation. Any use made of information contained in this thesis/dissertation must be in accordance with that legislation and must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the permission of the copyright holder. Abstract Troilus and Cressida is the unusual instance of a Shakespearean play which had long been read and commented upon before stage practitioners explored it in the theatre. My thesis examines the changing perceptions of the play’s characters, paying attention to the chronological relationship between revisions in literary criticism, much of which was written with little proximity to performance, with reinterpretations during its British stage history. The thesis has a particular focus on issues of gender and sexuality. Both the theatre and literary criticism reflected and responded to social change in their dealings with this play, but they did so at different moments. By using the case of Troilus and Cressida, I examine whether theatrical practice or academic literary criticism has acted as the more efficient cultural barometer. Revisions of Cressida are my central example and I also examine the reinterpretations of eight other characters. The delayed acceptance of the play into the theatre means that the claims of relevance become especially acute. Despite the perceived progressive potential of performance, I conclude that theatrical representations of characters in this play have been slow to change in relation to the revisions seen on the pages of literary criticism. Contents INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................. 1 Troilus and Cressida – On the page, then on the stage....................................................................... 1 ‘Our play’ – claims of relevance .......................................................................................................... 2 Print and Performance ........................................................................................................................ 4 Scholars and elite culture .................................................................................................................... 6 Literary criticism and performance ..................................................................................................... 7 The significance of Cressida .............................................................................................................. 10 Homoerotic elements ....................................................................................................................... 12 Character ........................................................................................................................................... 13 Gender and sexuality ........................................................................................................................ 16 Dryden’s adaptation .......................................................................................................................... 18 Early productions .............................................................................................................................. 19 The Marlowe Society ......................................................................................................................... 21 Design – period settings .................................................................................................................... 24 Renaissance/classical ........................................................................................................................ 26 Period analogue ................................................................................................................................ 33 Modern .............................................................................................................................................. 36 Eclectic ............................................................................................................................................... 38 The companies .................................................................................................................................. 39 Structure of chapters ........................................................................................................................ 40 CHAPTER 1 - CRESSIDA ................................................................................................................ 42 Villain or victim? ................................................................................................................................ 42 The ‘kissing scene’ in the text ........................................................................................................... 45 Cressida in literary criticism .............................................................................................................. 47 Cressida/Cresseid/Criseyde – the literary tradition .......................................................................... 50 Changing perceptions of Cressida in literary criticism ...................................................................... 53 Cressida on the stage ........................................................................................................................ 54 A new Cressida – reinterpreting the ‘kissing scene’ ......................................................................... 60 The reviewers’ response ................................................................................................................... 64 Developments from 1990 ................................................................................................................. 68 The ‘kissing scene’ becomes a dance ................................................................................................ 71 Men and masculinity ......................................................................................................................... 78 CHAPTER 2 - TROILUS.................................................................................................................... 82 Troilus – ‘a true knight’ ..................................................................................................................... 82 Troilus in literary criticism ................................................................................................................. 83 How old is Troilus? ............................................................................................................................ 86 A negative perception of Troilus ....................................................................................................... 87 Troilus’ use of language and a disappearing hero ............................................................................ 93 Troilus on the stage – ending the play .............................................................................................. 95 Troilus and questions of masculinity ............................................................................................... 106 ‘No remedy’ - the loss of Cressida ................................................................................................... 109 Troilus’ attitude to Cassandra ......................................................................................................... 113 CHAPTER 3 - HELEN ..................................................................................................................... 117 Helen in Shakespeare’s text ............................................................................................................ 119 Literary critics labelling Helen ......................................................................................................... 121 Shakespeare’s Helen in performance ............................................................................................. 125 Scenography .................................................................................................................................... 125 Decadence and enjoyment ............................................................................................................. 127 Additional stage time ...................................................................................................................... 133 The Helen scene in sombre tones ................................................................................................... 135 Helen and Cressida .......................................................................................................................... 145 CHAPTER 4 - HECTOR AND ULYSSES ....................................................................................