Can you create your own?
A modern-spelling script, used for our weekly read-throughs, can be downloaded by clicking here. The sixth play from the York Corpus Christi Plays deals with Adam and Eve's banishment from Paradise. It is based on the third Chapter of Genesis. Whilst the previous play- the Fall- has been popular to perform, the Expulsion has often been ignored or combined with the fifth play. As the last play to deal with the Creation, it bears a melancholy note- picked up on in the 2012 Modern Mysteries, where Ged Cooper's Fields of Gold sees an Adam-and-Eve-like relationship fall apart. The play not only deals with Adam and Eve's banishment, but their further punishment. Adam must labour for his living, and Eve must suffer through the labour of child-birth. These gendered expectations are something with which modern productions must wrestle. The play was originally performed by the Armourer's Guild. It is possible that the actor playing the angel bore a burning sword, as depicted in the East Window of York Minster. The original script, in 15th Century Middle English, can be found here, courtesy of Prof. Clifford Davidson and the University of Rochester's TEAMS Middle English Text Series. A modernised and edited version of the script can be downloaded by clicking here (PDF). Watch an adaptation by Tom Straszewski: |