Peter Quince's Parcell Players

Abstract

Peter Quince’s directorial challenge might be difficult for a modern reader to understand. Francis Flute, his leading lady, has demonstrated an ample amount of enthusiasm by volunteering to be in the play which Quince and his fellow mechanicals hope to present before Duke Theseus. His enthusiasm, however, has led him to commit a major error in his preparations. Flute, it would appear, has memorized every line on the part given to him by Quince, without considering whether each was to be spoken aloud or intended simply as a cue. Quince’s rehearsal, had it not been interrupted almost immediately after this bit of instruction, would surely have been a long and tedious affair: Flute would have been forced to “unlearn” the cue lines for his part, one by one, as each of his speeches came up.