Book review for Performing Orthodox Ritual in Byzantium by Andrew Walker White.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015 (ISBN 978-1-107-07385-2)

Pagani, Maria Pia

EleA@UniSA - Università degli Studi di Salerno

SinestesieonlinePERIODICO QUADRIMESTRALE DI STUDI SULLA LETTERATURA E LE ARTISUPPLEMENTO DELLA RIVISTA «SINESTESIE»ISSN 2280-6849Maria Pia PaganiLike a Prayer (in Byzantium)AbstractBook review for  Performing Orthodox Ritual in Byzantium by Andrew Walker White.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015 (ISBN 978-1-107-07385-2). KeywordsByzatine Theatre, Furnace Play, Orthodox SpiritualityContactmariapia.pagani@unipv.it   For a theatre historian, attending the Divine Liturgy in an Orthodox Christianchurch is always a special experience, because one of the most evident elements isthe performing dimension of faith. For a Western spectator, the ceremony has avery  refined  level,  and  some  relevant  factors  –  from the  organization  of  thearchitectural space, to the musical practice. In general, the impact is increased bythe rhythm and the emphasis of the ritual aesthetic.    This type of rite is never conceived as a simple form of entertainment. Duringthe  Byzantine  period,  the  proof  comes  from the  Service  of  the  Furnace:  thismonograph  analyzes  its  historical  context,  texts  and  iconography,  in  order  tounderstand its realization and its possibile modes of reception. The vitality of thispublic practice is also testified in early Imperial Russia, as a sort of cultural legacyfrom Byzantium:     «Altough its exact beginnings remain unclear, eyewitness accounts confirm thatthe Service of the Furnace was performed from at least the late fourteenth to themid  fifteenth  century.  [...]  Greek  service  books  were  routinely  transmitted  toSinestesieonline/Il Parlaggio online – N. 18, Anno 5, Dicembre 2016www.rivistasinestesie.itRussia, and it is likely that certain portions of the Service may have already beenincorporated into services there. In the years after the fall of Constantinople wehave evidence of an elaborate, highly theatrical variation on the Service performedin Moscow well into the 1600s» (pp. 140-141).    Taken from the Septuagint version of the Book of Daniel,  the  Service of theFurnace celebrates the salvation of three children from the martyrdom, with thehelp  of  an  angel.  The  first  hymn,  “The  Prayer  of  Azariah”,  combines  theimploration for God's mercy with the confession of the people's sinfulness. Thesecond hymn, “Song of the Three Children”, comes after the arrival of the angeland is an exhortation to praise the Lord (in Western tradition, it is known as theBenedicite). The culminating moments are the descent of the angel and the finaldance of the children, as an expression of joy for their salvation.      In the Appendix, there is a critical comparison among the texts of the Serviceof the Furnace  in five manuscripts, in order to evaluate the importance of thechoir  for  the  spiritual  and  liturgical  interpretation  (original  Greek  texts  withEnglish translations).  Moreover,  there is a focus on the Russian  Furnace Play,which is enriched by special fire effects and other elements not included in theByzantine version.      Andrew Walker White, professor at Stratford University (Virginia), is the firstAmerican theatre historian who has deeply analyzed Byzantine performance. Thismonograph is the result of his long research, which includes the staging of  theService of the Furnace at the University of Maryland campus. I was glad to meethim at  the  International  Conference Theatre  Historiography:  Genealogies  andNew Directions (Chicago, 10th-11th August 2011), organized by Association forTheatre in Higher Education (ATHE), jointly sponsored by Theatre History FocusGroup and Theory and Criticism Focus Group.    Our session was “Historiographical Migrations / International Transactions.”His paper was The Question of “Byzantine” Theatre: Methods and AssumptionsAlong  History's  Orientalist  Frontier.  He  presented  a  passage  of  his  research,whose  interdisciplinary  importance  was  immediately  clear.  Five  years  ago,listening his speech, I admired  the erudition of Andrew Walker White. Today, Ithink that Ettore Lo Gatto – the first Italian scholar who wrote about the FurnacePlay – would be happy to read his monograph.  PS: My paper for Chicago ATHE Conference in 2011 was Russian Theatre Studyin Italy: Roots and New Horizon.

Book review for, Performing Orthodox Ritual in Byzantium, by Andrew Walker White. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015. [Recensione]

http://elea.unisa.it:8080/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10556/3659/dicembre2016-22.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

Book review for, Performing Orthodox Ritual in Byzantium, by Andrew Walker White. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015. [Recensione]

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