A Mystery Play in Honour of the Nativity of our Lord — John Shaqi
A Mystery Play in Honour of the Nativity of our LordBenson, Robert Hugh
Religion
A Mystery Play in Honour of the Nativity of our Lord
Benson, Robert Hugh
Christmas plays
In the _third scene_ this fire figured again, standing on the ground.
Most of the stage R. was occupied by the shepherds’ shelter, with
room, however, left to pass both behind and before it. The shelter
was constructed of a three-sided clothes-horse, about six feet high;
and this was hung all over and roofed by pieces of old sacking and
deer-skins. The opening was towards the audience. A hurdle, standing on
end, projected above the roof.
The “lamb” was life-size, ingeniously made out of cotton-wool, with
a cotton skin on which were painted eyes and mouth. It is wrapped
throughout in a piece of sacking, so that no more of it need be
finished than the head and front legs.
In the _fourth scene_ the chief property is the crib. A box was taken
about four feet long, by three by two, and set on one of its long
sides upon a table. The whole of the box and table was then covered
with crumpled and painted brown paper, resembling that fastened to the
wings; straw was laid inside, and a silver lamp hung from the edge to
the upper side. The starry sky at the back was variegated by a large
hurdle projecting from behind the crib. The bambino was supplied by a
well-known firm in London.[11]
In the _fifth scene_, from which the crib is absent, the principal
property is the throne and dais. This needs little comment. The dais
came from a schoolroom; and the chair was a very tall armless one of
yellowish wood. Two tall mahogany candlesticks stood on either side
upon the dais. The book used by the boy was a large leather volume
bound by strings.
III. THE COSTUMES
Before treating these in detail, it is necessary to treat first the
general principles that were followed.
These were:
1. That the drapery should be voluminous.
2. That the colours should be dark and soft.
3. That the dresses should be shaped after Eastern models.
4. That all such things as tinsel and spangles should be
utterly eschewed.
Now the foundations of Eastern dress are the following:
1. The _Tunic_.—This is a long-sleeved garment resembling an alb. It
may be of any colour, or white. In the case of young men and boys it is
drawn through the girdle up to the knees.
2. The _Burnous_ or Mantle.—This is more difficult to describe; but
it may be constructed by taking a large rectangular piece of stuff,
about four feet deep by six feet wide. Imagine this spread out on the
ground. Then take the top corners and fold them in about eighteen
inches along the top edge, folding in at the same time the whole length
of the stuff below. Sew along the top edge only to right and left, thus
making supports for the shoulders. Then cut at either side, near the
top, in the crease of the stuff, two wide arm-holes. Finally, fix about
eighteen inches down the front, on the folded stuff, a strong hook and
eye on either side.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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