Page:History of the German people at the close of the Middle Ages vol1.djvu/286

 274 HISTORY OF THE GERMAN PEOPLE actors assembled (not professional ones, for there was no charge for admission), but the ecclesiastics and scholars in the higher schools, and such citizens as were willing to take the female characters or wished to witness the performance. Following the example of the painters, who clothed their saints according to the fashions of the day, the costumes were of local fashion. God the Father, the angels and the prophets, were re- presented in priestly vestments, but Christ always in bishop's robes. It was a matter of earnest religious feeling both to the actors and the audience, and the performances always began with the chant : ' Let us pray the Holy Spirit to preserve us in the faith until we leave this vale of tears for our true home. Kyrie eleison ! ' Let me quote the introduction to the play of ' St. Dorothea ' as an example of the prologues : ' In all his undertakings man should invoke God's help with earnestness, in order to accomplish his work with less sin and more merit. May God and the Holy Virgin now assist us ! Let us all join in saying the canticle of the Holy Ghost.' The manager appeared as one of the saints, gene- rally St. Augustine, or sometimes as Virgil — ' the ancient pagan' — and explained the period and circumstances of the representation. Each actor advanced to the front of the stage, repeated his part, and retired. The choirboys sang the accompanying hymns, and at the conclusion all went to a church service or joined in singing some appropriate hymn ; after the Easter Play, for instance, 'Christ is arisen,' or 'Jesus, mild and holy.' These plays generally took place in the afternoon, lasted several days, and required a large number of