INTRODUCTION. THE masque of Comus was written by John Milton in 1634 for the children of the Earl of Bridgewater to perform at Ludlow Castle on the occasion of their father's introduction as President of Wales. It fulfils all the conditions of a masque-the then popular form of a dramatic performance-by the interposition of a group of dancers who take no part in the speaking or singing, but form one of the principal features; the dances too must be of two kinds, a stately figure measure, and another of a more lively description. The original music was arranged and five songs composed by Henry Lawes, who himself, as Thyrsis, took part in the performance at Ludlow Castle. But the text was probably altered to suit the music, as in the first printed edition it would have been impossible to sing Lawes' music. There being no record of music for the various dances the ones introduced here are taken from a manuscript volume in the British Museum called "Elizabeth Roger's Virginal Book," dating from the first half of the seventeenth century, and were used in the performance of Comus at the Milton Tercentenary at Cambridge on 10th July 1908. I am indebted to the Chairman of Committee,' Christ's College Magazine, for kind permission to use the music as printed in vol. xxiii., No. 68. It is an open question whether the masque was acted at Ludlow Castle as we now read it. It must be remembered that the little actors were quite young, and the recitation of the poem as it now stands would have been a severe intellectual strain-the audience too would hardly be prepared to listen with pleasure to poetry with such a deep philosophical tendency. 7 1 Norman L. Ingles, Esq. 8 INTRODUCTION Either the plot may have been arranged by the poet and afterwards expanded into the poem, or the poem may have been curtailed to suit the youthful players. In adherence to the latter proposition I have taken the same liberty of abridging and arranging the masque to bring it within the scope of young performers as a school play. The poem offers a splendid opportunity for study, and most teachers are glad to find a subject like Comus, which is capable of dramatisation and within the limits of young people's capabilities. Time is not wasted in the getting up of a play if at the same time a knowledge of real poetry and classical lore can be imparted in a dramatic and elocutionary form. In this manner the love of good literature can be implanted in the minds of the young who might otherwise turn from Comus as being too dull and devoid of interest. The introduction of the dances too can bring in still younger children, and the whole school can take part in a performance which cannot fail to stamp for ever in the mind of the performer and players the exquisite beauty and grace of John Milton's genius as displayed in his masque of Comus. |