Lost plays in Shakespeare's England

Lost plays are a source of significant information on playwrights, playing companies, audiences, and venues in Shakespeare's England. They include plays by Shakespeare, Marlowe, Jonson, and other canonical playwrights in addition to anonymous plays and the writings of lesser known writers. Details preserved depend upon the record, but may include title, date, authorship, company affiliation, plot, and even details of performance. This edited collection examines assumptions about what a lost play is and how it can be talked about; how lost plays can be reconstructed, particularly when they use narratives already familiar to playgoers; and how lost plays can force us to reassess extant plays, particularly through ideas of repertory studies. Lost plays, it argues, improve our knowledge of playwrights' and playing companies' overall dramatic output.