Masque and Opera in England, 1656-1688

Masque and Opera in England, 1656–1688 presents a comprehensive study of the development of court masque and through-composed opera in England from the mid-1650s to the Revolution of 1688–89. In addressing the problem of generic categorization within a highly fragmentary corpus for which a limited amount of documentation survives, Walkling argues that our understanding of the distinctions between masque and opera must be premised upon a thorough knowledge of theatrical context and performance circumstances. This interdisciplinary study draws on extensive archival and literary evidence, close textual readings, tabular analysis and meticulous collation of bibliographical and musical sources.