York

 

The first stop of this sabbatical journey is York. Home to the York Mystery Plays, which get staged/performed every four years. When COVID hit I abandoned the original itinerary proposed to Lily for my grant because I didn't think, know, or really investigate whether Lincoln (which is where they were scheduled in 2020) was going to go forward with their COVID-delayed production. If so, I might never have come up with this alternative, and I'm so glad I did. That said, only eight plays in the 54-play cycle were chosen for production this year, down from the twelve that have been mounted in the past. This is likely due to the tail of COVID and the uncertainty that comes with it. I don't really know. 
What that means is that I've seen all the plays. Further production of them in the Shambles Market and again this coming Sunday will be more of what I've already experienced. I am happy that Marie and Yared got to see the first three plays performed in their traditional setting on the college green behind the Minster. We watched the musicians lead the wagons into place and strained at times to hear the performers over the ambient noise of Sunday city life. At one point a cyclist chose to ride down the street in front of where the Creation play was being performed. "God" ad-libbed at that point a thunderbolt for the offender. Fun. After the first three, we got a bit at a nearby pub and while sitting in the courtyard, watched as the fourth wagon made its way down the street with musicians leading it to the next location.

These plays were a wonderful blend of old and new. They use the old texts from one of the original cycles, so the language has the cadence and vocabulary of something antiquated. It takes some patience and resignation to know that you aren't going to catch all its meaning as your ear attempts to untangle it all. Similar to seeing Shakespear performed. That said, creative elements were introduced. The first wagon used rudimentary pulls, drops and even a little water spout for the whale as the first five days of creation unfolded. By contrast, the final wagon depicting the Last Judgment used amplified musicians and singers and much more elaborate costuming. The fall of Adam and Eve was performed by 14-year-olds from a local academy to great effect. And the crucifixion was movingly depicted by a local company of young actors with developmental disabilities. 

Since we likely won't take them in again (even though I bought tickets for this coming Sunday's performance as well) it's freed us up to experience other things in Yorkshire. We walked the wall, and enjoyed a mid-day drink in the garden of The Grey. We have taken in afternoon tea in the Belmont Room of Betty's; a room whose design was inspired by the interior of the Cunard line's Queen Mary. Today, we'll take the bus to visit Castle Howard and tomorrow we rent a car to drive to the moors and the seaside at Whitby. Grace has joined us and we are having a delightful time exploring and leaving plenty of time for unplanned stops and diversions as we find them. This is the freedom to explore that the sabbatical allows, and I am grateful.