The Place of Stage Directions in Reformed Jesuit Drama (Since Mid-18th Century)

Under the influence of freshly conceived enlightenment ideas, and the works of the competing Pijar stage, the eighteenth century Jesuit dramaturgy began to change. The reforms had started many changes: in the choice of works, of the dramatic forms, in lessening the baroque sumptuousness. It proved leaving the earlier aesthetics for classicist forms. The views on the function of the theatre also changed. While the matter of changes happening on collegial stages until the mid-18^th century has been investigated thoroughly, the stage directions were looked upon in greater detail rather sporadically. In this paper, I will try to answer the question of whether and how, along with the process of classification, the role and the function of stage directions in Jesuit drama changed. Even a brief look of source material shows that in comparison with the 17^th century, the 18^th century brought about a demise in the number of stage directions. Still, they had an important role to play. I shall present the function those directions played, and investigate their usefulness for attempts at reconstructing Jesuit drama pieces. The material under analysis consists of plays written or published in between the half of the 18th century and the year 1765.