CaPer · Catholic Performance Culture in Early Modern England

Catholic Performance Culture in Early Modern England

Catholic Performance Culture in Early Modern England (CaPer) explored how practices of representation and recreation were vital to shaping and sustaining Catholic minority in early modern Protestant England. It comprehensively investigates how Catholics used performing arts, sports, and ceremonies to create communal bonds, negotiate their place in a hostile society, and advance Catholic Reformation in the period between Elizabeth I’s accession to the throne in 1558 and the restoration of the monarchy in 1660. Whereas sacraments and worship provided an essential glue for dispersed Catholics in England, theatricals and leisure activities, such as dancing, singing, and hunting, were equally vital to their survival, offering occasions for evangelisation, sociability, and self-presentation. Systematic investigation of Catholic performance culture allows us to pay greater attention to sources routinely overlooked by scholars, as well as to juxtapose and study a wide variety of seemingly ephemeral practices of a single community in a coherent and sustained way. This work is essential if we are to thoroughly understand how religious minorities in Britain and across early modern Europe coped with persecution and social exclusion during the long and global Reformation. The project has five main objectives: 1. To provide a survey and analysis of all major forms and records of Catholic performance in England between 1558 and 1660. 2. To uncover and understand the role of women in Catholic performance culture, particularly in their capacity as patrons, performers, teachers, and record keepers. 3. To gauge the impact of continental Catholic colleges on performing arts and devotional practices among Catholics in England, considering in particular the role of missionary priests as reformers and conduits of new styles and fashions. 4. To lead the way in systematically advancing our understanding of British Catholic culture, introducing new methodologies and transforming scholarly debates on performance cultures of religious minorities across early modern Europe. 5. To offer a better understanding of how diverse religious communities coexisted in the early modern period and enquire how this knowledge might inform solutions aimed at reducing inequalities and social exclusion in contemporary Europe. Relying on a variety of archival and literary sources, CaPer reconsidered cultural history of English Catholics, introduce to historiography previously neglected actors and practices, and expanded our knowledge of religious coexistence in early modern Europe. While committed to academic excellence, the project also addresses pressing issues of public concern. In Europe today, religious minorities are again facing mounting hostilities and state restrictions. Drawing on historical knowledge, this project strived to shape public opinion, offering a meaningful historical perspective on contemporary issues of religious intolerance and social exclusion. CaPer looked to the past to help addressing Europe’s challenges of the future.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union