Yvain: Laudine and Lunete

About the scene and clip: 
As Laudine displays her woe at the loss of her husband, Lunete, her friend and companion, tries to persuade her to go on living and indeed assures her that she can find an even better husband than the one she has lost. The performer embodies both characters.

About the work:
Yvain is one of the five surviving romances by Chrétien de Troyes, who is often considered the father of Arthurian romance. This great work, in octosyllabic rhymed couplets, was composed for Marie, Countess of Champagne, around 1170. The romance recounts the adventures of Yvain, a knight of King Arthur’s court, who wins the beautiful Laudine in marriage (having killed her husband in single combat). He then loses both her love and his honor through his failure to keep a vow to return home from his knightly activities by an agreed-upon date. The second half of the romance is devoted to adventures in which Yvain, accompanied by a lion, creates a new name for himself (the “Knight with the Lion”), recovers his honor through a series of good deeds, and finally wins back his wife.

About the genre:
Medieval romances are typically long narratives of love and adventure in which an aristocratic hero (or occasionally a heroine) proves himself in combat and courtship. Medieval romance arose in France and Anglo-Norman England in the 12th century and spread through Western and even Eastern Europe. Many early romances tell the stories of knights and ladies at King Arthur’s court. In the 12th and 13th centuries, romances are composed in verse (typically octosyllabic rhymed couplets), and are commonly performed aloud from memory by minstrels; romances are also sometimes read aloud. In the 13th century, some romances begin to be written in prose; public and private readings become more frequent.

About the edition/translation:
Yvain or The Knight with the Lion, trans. Ruth Harwood Cline, Athens, GA, University of Georgia Press, 1975, pp. 44ff. Old French: Le Chevalier au Lion (Yvain), ed./trans. David F. Hult, in Romans de Chrétien de Troyes, eds./trans. J.M. Fritz et al, Paris, Classiques Modernes/ Livre de Poche, 1994.

About the performer/ensemble: 
Samantha Able is a Drama student in the Stonestreet Studio at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2012).

About the production:
This performance was created for the course “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz at New York University in spring 2012. It was videoed by Samantha Ehrenberger and edited by Abigail Wahl.

Yvain: Yvain falls in love

About the scene and clip:
The performer tells how Love attacks and wounds Yvain, and he falls madly in love with his enemy, Laudine, the lady whose husband he has just killed in combat.

About the work:
Yvain is one of the five surviving romances by Chrétien de Troyes, who is often considered the father of Arthurian romance. This great work, in octosyllabic rhymed couplets, was composed for Marie, Countess of Champagne, around 1170. The romance recounts the adventures of Yvain, a knight of King Arthur’s court, who wins the beautiful Laudine in marriage (having killed her husband in single combat). He then loses both her love and his honor through his failure to keep a vow to return home from his knightly activities by an agreed-upon date. The second half of the romance is devoted to adventures in which Yvain, accompanied by a lion, creates a new name for himself (the “Knight with the Lion”), recovers his honor through a series of good deeds, and finally wins back his wife.

About the genre:
Medieval romances are typically long narratives of love and adventure in which an aristocratic hero (or occasionally a heroine) proves himself in combat and courtship. Medieval romance arose in France and Anglo-Norman England in the 12th century and spread through Western and even Eastern Europe. Many early romances tell the stories of knights and ladies at King Arthur’s court. In the 12th and 13th centuries, romances are composed in verse (typically octosyllabic rhymed couplets), and are commonly performed aloud from memory by minstrels; romances are also sometimes read aloud. In the 13th century, some romances begin to be written in prose; public and private readings become more frequent.

About the edition/translation:
Yvain or The Knight with the Lion, trans. Ruth Harwood Cline, Athens, GA, University of Georgia Press, 1975, pp. 38ff. Old French: Le Chevalier au Lion (Yvain), ed./trans. David F. Hult, in Romans de Chrétien de Troyes, eds./trans. J.M. Fritz et al, Paris, Classiques Modernes/ Livre de Poche, 1994.

About the performer/ensemble:
Alex Herron is a student in Film and TV at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2012).

About the production:
This performance was created for the course “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz at New York University in spring 2012. It was videoed by Samantha Ehrenberger and edited by Abigail Wahl.

Yvain: Calogrenant tells his mortifying story

About the scene and clip:
The solo performer recounts and embodies Calogrenant’s story of how he was defeated by his powerful adversary (the husband of Laudine).  It is hearing Calogrenant’s story that makes Yvain want to go the magical fountain and prove his own valor.

About the work:
Yvain is one of the five surviving romances by Chrétien de Troyes, who is often considered the father of Arthurian romance. This great work, in octosyllabic rhymed couplets, was composed for Marie, Countess of Champagne, around 1170. The romance recounts the adventures of Yvain, a knight of King Arthur’s court, who wins the beautiful Laudine in marriage (having killed her husband in single combat). He then loses both her love and his honor through his failure to keep a vow to return home from his knightly activities by an agreed-upon date. The second half of the romance is devoted to adventures in which Yvain, accompanied by a lion, creates a new name for himself (the “Knight with the Lion”), recovers his honor through a series of good deeds, and finally wins back his wife.

About the genre:
Medieval romances are typically long narratives of love and adventure in which an aristocratic hero (or occasionally a heroine) proves himself in combat and courtship. Medieval romance arose in France and Anglo-Norman England in the 12th century and spread through Western and even Eastern Europe. Many early romances tell the stories of knights and ladies at King Arthur’s court. In the 12th and 13th centuries, romances are composed in verse (typically octosyllabic rhymed couplets), and are commonly performed aloud from memory by minstrels; romances are also sometimes read aloud. In the 13th century, some romances begin to be written in prose; public and private readings become more frequent.

About the edition/translation:
Yvain or The Knight with the Lion, trans. Ruth Harwood Cline, Athens, GA, University of Georgia Press, 1975, pp. 15ff. Old French: Le Chevalier au Lion (Yvain), ed./trans. David F. Hult, in Romans de Chrétien de Troyes, eds./trans. J.M. Fritz et al, Paris, Classiques Modernes/ Livre de Poche, 1994.

About the performer/ensemble: 
William Hutto is a student in the Meisner Studio at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2012).

About the production:
This performance was created for the course “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz at New York University in spring 2012. It was videoed by Samantha Ehrenberger and edited by Abigail Wahl.

Hunchbacks: In the news!

About the scene and clip:
This is a news report about the key hunchback in the fabliau—with a good deal of extra drama provided by the reporter (she is upset at having to say bad things about a humpback) and the director of the news program (who wants to get things rolling).

About the work:
The Three Hunchbacks is a comic tale about a man who marries off his daughter to a jealous hunchback—and about the wife’s clever stratagem to get rid of the bodies of three hunchbacked minstrels who suffocated in trunks in her chamber; her nasty husband is disposed of as well. The website contains several clips drawn from this fabliau, exemplifying some of the many ways in which this story can be performed.

About the genre:
Fabliaux are short comic tales. This narrative genre was extremely popular in the 13th and 14th centuries in France and elsewhere in Europe (Chaucer’s Miller’s Tale is a sophisticated fabliau). Fabliaux almost invariably deal with the passions of lust, gluttony, avarice—and with attempts to trick or deceive others. Characters are typically bourgeois, clerks and monks, or peasants—and often women. The treatment is comic or satirical. But fabliaux vary considerably. Some are extremely vulgar in language and treatment, inviting crude gestures in performance. Other fabliaux are based on puns or wordplay. Many have a moral at the end and some have ethical overtones throughout. A few fabliaux are refined and courtly in language and themes. Many fabliaux are anonymous, but a few are by known poets. Performance styles and strategies for the fabliaux probably varied considerably in the Middle Ages, according to the subject matter and characters, the poet, the performer(s), the occasion, and the kind of audience present.

About the edition/translation:
Freely adapted from Fabliaux Fair and Foul, trans. John Duval, Pegasus/ Medieval & Renaissance Texts, Binghamton, NY, 1992, pp. 140ff.  Old French: Fabliaux, ed. R.C. Johnston and D.D.R. Owen, Oxford, Basil Blackwell, 1965 (other Old French editions also exist).

About the performer/ensemble:
Kara Durrett and Ellie Johnson are Drama students in the Atlantic Acting School at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2010).

About the production:
This performance was created for “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught at New York University by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz, in spring 2010. Sam Erenberger was the videographer.

Cid: The Cid’s wife prays—an epic creed

About the scene and clip:
The Cid’s wife, Doña Jimena, prays for the safety of her beloved husband, in what is called “an epic creed”: as she prays, she briefly goes over many great moments in the history of salvation, from the creation on.

About the work: 
The Song of the Cid (Cantar del Mio Cid) is a medieval Spanish epic, probably composed in the 12th century, and preserved in a single, somewhat incomplete 14th-century manuscript; it is probably anonymous (though there is controversy on the issue). It recounts important adventures of an historical figure, Rodrigo (or Ruy) Díaz, known as “El Cid” (from an Arabic honoric term, meaning “lord” or “sir”).  The Cid was a major hero of the “reconquista” (reconquest) of Spain from the Moors. This epic is (especially for an epic) unusually cheerful on the whole: The Cid was “born at the right hour!” The first part tells of his banishment from Castile by King Alfonso (for reasons unclear in the epic), his many conquests in Moorish territory, and his reinstatement at court. The second part focuses on the highly unsatisfactory marriages of The Cid’s two daughters to arrogant, cowardly Spanish noblemen, the sons of Carrión (the king had chosen the marriages); the brothers beat the two women and leave them for dead in the forest, but they are rescued. The Cid contrives a sophisticated and civilized revenge on the two men—and his daughters go on to marry kings.    

About the genre:  
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative that tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation: 
The Song of the Cid: A Dual-Language Edition with Parallel Text, trans. Burton Raffel, New York, Penguin Editions, 2009; stanza 18, pp. 25-27.

About the performer/ensemble: 
Katie Henry is a major in Dramatic Writing at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, with a minor in History (2012).

About the production:
This performance was created for the course “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz at New York University in spring 2012. It was videoed by Samantha Ehrenberger and edited by Abigail Wahl.

Cid: The Cid with his defeated enemy the count

About the scene and clip:
Here we see The Cid with an enemy, Count Ramón, whom he has defeated in battle and who angrily refuses to break bread with him. The Cid offers him his liberty if he will eat—and he does so. (But The Cid won’t give him back all he has won from him!) The Cid is performed as a cowboy, with appropriate recorded music as a backdrop.

About the work: 
The Song of the Cid (Cantar del Mio Cid) is a medieval Spanish epic, probably composed in the 12th century, and preserved in a single, somewhat incomplete 14th-century manuscript; it is probably anonymous (though there is controversy on the issue). It recounts important adventures of an historical figure, Rodrigo (or Ruy) Díaz, known as “El Cid” (from an Arabic honoric term, meaning “lord” or “sir”).  The Cid was a major hero of the “reconquista” (reconquest) of Spain from the Moors. This epic is (especially for an epic) unusually cheerful on the whole: The Cid was “born at the right hour!” The first part tells of his banishment from Castile by King Alfonso (for reasons unclear in the epic), his many conquests in Moorish territory, and his reinstatement at court. The second part focuses on the highly unsatisfactory marriages of The Cid’s two daughters to arrogant, cowardly Spanish noblemen, the sons of Carrión (the king had chosen the marriages); the brothers beat the two women and leave them for dead in the forest, but they are rescued. The Cid contrives a sophisticated and civilized revenge on the two men—and his daughters go on to marry kings.    

About the genre:  
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative that tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation: 
The Song of the Cid: A Dual-Language Edition with Parallel Text, trans. Burton Raffel, New York, Penguin Editions, 2009; stanzas 61-62, pp. 73.

About the performer/ensemble: 
Alex Herron is a student in Film and TV at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2012).

About the production:
This performance was created for the course “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz at New York University in spring 2012. It was videoed by Samantha Ehrenberger and edited by Abigail Wahl.

Cid: The Cid with the lion and his cowardly sons-in-law

About the scene and clip:
While The Cid is asleep his lion gets loose. His men make a circle around him to protect him—but his cowardly sons-in-law scream in fear and try to run away. When The Cid wakes up, he calmly takes the terrified lion by its mane and escorts it back to his cage.

About the work:
The Song of the Cid (Cantar del Mio Cid) is a medieval Spanish epic, probably composed in the 12th century, and preserved in a single, somewhat incomplete 14th-century manuscript; it is probably anonymous (though there is controversy on the issue). It recounts important adventures of an historical figure, Rodrigo (or Ruy) Díaz, known as “El Cid” (from an Arabic honoric term, meaning “lord” or “sir”).  The Cid was a major hero of the “reconquista” (reconquest) of Spain from the Moors. This epic is (especially for an epic) unusually cheerful on the whole: The Cid was “born at the right hour!” The first part tells of his banishment from Castile by King Alfonso (for reasons unclear in the epic), his many conquests in Moorish territory, and his reinstatement at court. The second part focuses on the highly unsatisfactory marriages of The Cid’s two daughters to arrogant, cowardly Spanish noblemen, the sons of Carrión (the king had chosen the marriages); the brothers beat the two women and leave them for dead in the forest, but they are rescued. The Cid contrives a sophisticated and civilized revenge on the two men—and his daughters go on to marry kings.    

About the genre:  
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative that tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation: 
The Song of the Cid: A Dual-Language Edition with Parallel Text, trans. Burton Raffel, New York, Penguin Editions, 2009; stanza 112, pp. 159-161.

About the performer/ensemble: 
Kingsley Nwaogu is a major in the Experimental Theatre Wing at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2012).

About the production:
This performance was created for the course “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz at New York University in spring 2012. It was videoed by Samantha Ehrenberger and edited by Abigail Wahl.

Cid: The Cid embraces his wife and daughters, and leaves Castile

About the scene and clip:
The Cid, weeping as he prepares to leave Castile, embraces his daughters and his wife, telling them how much he loves them.  A feast is given in his honor—and then he departs.  He is accompanied by many knights who love this great man, “born at the right hour.”

About the work: 
The Song of the Cid (Cantar del Mio Cid) is a medieval Spanish epic, probably composed in the 12th century, and preserved in a single, somewhat incomplete 14th-century manuscript; it is probably anonymous (though there is controversy on the issue). It recounts important adventures of an historical figure, Rodrigo (or Ruy) Díaz, known as “El Cid” (from an Arabic honoric term, meaning “lord” or “sir”).  The Cid was a major hero of the “reconquista” (reconquest) of Spain from the Moors. This epic is (especially for an epic) unusually cheerful on the whole: The Cid was “born at the right hour!” The first part tells of his banishment from Castile by King Alfonso (for reasons unclear in the epic), his many conquests in Moorish territory, and his reinstatement at court. The second part focuses on the highly unsatisfactory marriages of The Cid’s two daughters to arrogant, cowardly Spanish noblemen, the sons of Carrión (the king had chosen the marriages); the brothers beat the two women and leave them for dead in the forest, but they are rescued. The Cid contrives a sophisticated and civilized revenge on the two men—and his daughters go on to marry kings.    

About the genre:  
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative that tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation:  
The Song of the Cid: A Dual-Language Edition with Parallel Text, trans. Burton Raffel, New York, Penguin Editions, 2009; stanzas 16-17, pp. 21-23.

About the performer/ensemble:  
William Hutto is a student in the Meisner Studio at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2012).

About the production:
This performance was created for the course “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz at New York University in spring 2012. It was videoed by Alexander Herron and edited by Abigail Wahl.

Cid: The Carrión Brothers plot to kill their wives, The Cid’s daughters

About the scene and clip:
The performer embodies the arrogant and evil Carrión Brothers, who plan to take their wives, who are the daughters of The Cid, into the forest and kill them.

About the work: 
The Song of the Cid (Cantar del Mio Cid) is a medieval Spanish epic, probably composed in the 12th century, and preserved in a single, somewhat incomplete 14th-century manuscript; it is probably anonymous (though there is controversy on the issue). It recounts important adventures of an historical figure, Rodrigo (or Ruy) Díaz, known as “El Cid” (from an Arabic honoric term, meaning “lord” or “sir”).  The Cid was a major hero of the “reconquista” (reconquest) of Spain from the Moors. This epic is (especially for an epic) unusually cheerful on the whole: The Cid was “born at the right hour!” The first part tells of his banishment from Castile by King Alfonso (for reasons unclear in the epic), his many conquests in Moorish territory, and his reinstatement at court. The second part focuses on the highly unsatisfactory marriages of The Cid’s two daughters to arrogant, cowardly Spanish noblemen, the sons of Carrión (the king had chosen the marriages); the brothers beat the two women and leave them for dead in the forest, but they are rescued. The Cid contrives a sophisticated and civilized revenge on the two men—and his daughters go on to marry kings.    

About the genre:  
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative that tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation:  
The Song of the Cid: A Dual-Language Edition with Parallel Text, trans. Burton Raffel, New York, Penguin Editions, 2009; stanza 124, pp. 175-177.

About the performer/ensemble:  
Angélie Guilbaud is a Drama student in the Stella Adler Studio at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2012).

About the production:
This performance was created for the course “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz at New York University in spring 2012. It was videoed by Alexander Herron and edited by Abigail Wahl.

Cid: The Cid prepares joyfully to go into battle

About the scene and clip:
The Cid goes joyfully into battle, with the performer beating  his hands on the table to imitate the sound of the Moorish drums.  The Cid reassures his terrified wife and the ladies that all will be well—he will conquer, and those drums will soon hang in St. Mary’s Church!

About the work: 
The Song of the Cid (Cantar del Mio Cid) is a medieval Spanish epic, probably composed in the 12th century, and preserved in a single, somewhat incomplete 14th-century manuscript; it is probably anonymous (though there is controversy on the issue). It recounts important adventures of an historical figure, Rodrigo (or Ruy) Díaz, known as “El Cid” (from an Arabic honoric term, meaning “lord” or “sir”).  The Cid was a major hero of the “reconquista” (reconquest) of Spain from the Moors. This epic is (especially for an epic) unusually cheerful on the whole: The Cid was “born at the right hour!” The first part tells of his banishment from Castile by King Alfonso (for reasons unclear in the epic), his many conquests in Moorish territory, and his reinstatement at court. The second part focuses on the highly unsatisfactory marriages of The Cid’s two daughters to arrogant, cowardly Spanish noblemen, the sons of Carrión (the king had chosen the marriages); the brothers beat the two women and leave them for dead in the forest, but they are rescued. The Cid contrives a sophisticated and civilized revenge on the two men—and his daughters go on to marry kings.    

About the genre:  
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative that tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation:  
The Song of the Cid: A Dual-Language Edition with Parallel Text, trans. Burton Raffel, New York, Penguin Editions, 2009; stanza 91, pp. 117-119.

About the performer/ensemble:  
Jon Sokolow is a Drama student in the Experimental Theatre Wing at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2012).

About the production:
This performance was created for the course “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz at New York University in spring 2012. It was videoed by Alexander Herron and edited by Abigail Wahl.