This is the first book to examine the rise of Spain's extraordinary national theatre in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries in all its aspects - the commercial theatre, the court drama and the Corpus autos, the organisation of theatrical life, the playhouses themselves and their public, the literary and moral controversies, and the plays as literary texts.

This is the first book to examine the rise of Spain's extraordinary national theatre in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries in all aspects--the commercial theatre, court drama and the Corpus autos, organization of theatrical life, playhouses and their public, literary and moral controversies, and the plays as literary texts.