Studies in Performance and Early Modern Drama

<p>Seismic shifts in the theatrical meanings of <em>The Merry Wives of Windsor</em> have taken place across the centuries as Shakespeare’s frequently performed play has relocated to Windsor across the world, journeying along the production/adaptation/appropriation continuum.</p><p>This (eco-)performance history of Shakespeare’s <em>The Merry Wives of Windsor</em> not only offers the first in-depth analysis of the play in production, with a particular focus on the representation of merry women, but also utilises the comedy’s forest-aware dramaturgy to explore Mistress Page’s concept of being ‘frugal in my mirth’ in relation to sustainable theatre practices. Herne’s Oak – the fictitious tree in Windsor Forest where everyone meets in the final scene of the play – is utilised to enable a maverick but ecologically based reframing of the productions of <em>Merry Wives</em> analysed here.</p><p>This study engages with gender, physical comedy, and cultural relocations of Windsor across the world to offer new insight into <em>Merry Wives</em> and its theatricality.</p>