Reading the Chester Cycle

This article reviews recent (1998–2008) work on the Chester cycle of medieval drama. Recent thought on the cycle has been fundamentally affected by the letters of the Puritan divine Christopher Goodman, which show the Chester cycle being revised and altered right up to its final performance in 1575. The works discussed primarily cover post‐Reformation issues, with a focus on authority and control, both inside and outside the play. These concerns also inform articles on such other topics as sponsorship, audience response, and gender. Staging is discussed in several articles, as are the thematic and pragmatic functions of the Expositor. Many of the articles are also comparative, linking the Chester cycle with the York, Towneley, or N. Town plays, as well as other art and literature, both medieval and modern.