Elche is located in the Province of Alicante, Valencian Community, Spain. It has an area of 326.1 square kilometers, and a population of 247163 (in 2003). It is a city of Southeast Spain with a long history. In the fifth Century B.C., it was very famous as the representative of the Iberian art.
From the early 1000s to the beginning of the Renaissance, the medieval play created a play form of miracle play, i.e., mystery play and morality play. The former is based on the passage of the Bible, such as the resurrection of Jesus, the genesis of a century or the final judgment; the latter is usually a moral or fable story. From the remaining history and literature materials, they are very delicate products, full of visual wonders and musical imagination. The opera is a kind of comprehensive music form in medieval times. It will unite all kinds of medieval music forms, such as secular songs and dances, the works of poets, and the scared singing in the church. The play of Easter and Christmas is based on the content of Bible clearly, so it is classified as a mystery play.
埃爾切,位于西班牙巴倫西亞自治區(qū)阿利坎特省,面積326.1平方公里,人口247,163(2003年),是西班牙東南部一座歷史悠久的城市。公元前五世紀(jì)已負(fù)盛名,為伊比利亞藝術(shù)的代表地。
中世紀(jì)戲劇從11世紀(jì)到文藝復(fù)興初期創(chuàng)造出一種奇跡劇的戲劇形式,其為神秘劇和道德劇。前者以《圣經(jīng)》的段落如耶穌復(fù)活、創(chuàng)世紀(jì)或最后的審判為基礎(chǔ);后者通常是一個(gè)道德的或寓言的故事作為它的基礎(chǔ)。從遺存的歷史和文學(xué)資料中來看,它們是很精致的產(chǎn)品,充滿著視覺的奇觀和音樂的想象。神秘劇是中世紀(jì)的一種綜合音樂形式,它將中世紀(jì)各種音樂形式——世俗歌曲和舞曲、吟唱詩人的作品、教堂的圣詠等集中于一體。那些關(guān)于復(fù)活節(jié)和圣誕節(jié)的戲劇明確的以《圣經(jīng)》的內(nèi)容為基礎(chǔ),因此被劃為神秘劇的范圍。
The mystery play of Elche is a sacred musical drama of the death, assumption and crowning of the Virgin. It has been performed since the 15th century in the Basilica of Saint Mary of Elche with special permission from the Pope. The play is living testimony to European religious theatre from the Middle Ages; as well as the medieval culture of devotion to the Virgin which was influenced by Byzantine rites. The mystery play, which is entirely sung, is presented in two acts played on 14 and 15 August. The text, conserved in collections dating from 1625, is written in the Valencian language, with several parts in Latin. Medieval songs alternate with songs from the Renaissance and Baroque periods. The stage is organized horizontally for the earth and vertically for heaven, a characteristic of medieval mysteries. The play, reflecting the cultural and linguistic identity of the people of Valencia, involves about 300 volunteers each year and attracts the entire population.
The mystery play was proclaimed a National Monument by the Second Spanish Republic in 1931, protecting it by law. Now training institutions are envisaged for actors and singers. It is now facing two threats, first of all, it is difficult to find the materials and know how to maintain the scenery and stage devices, secondly, the Valencian language used in the performance has been largely replaced by Castillan. Therefore the the authenticity and integrity of the world heritage is threatened. To protect the cultural heritage, the City of Elche and the government of the autonomous region have made various efforts, now the training institutions for actors and singers of the mystery have been built up. In 1990, the City Council and the Ministry of Culture of Valencia organized an international festival of medieval theatre and music, during which people watch the performance, organize seminars, and for preserving the mystery play, a museum of mystery plays is envisaged in the City of Elche. In 2001, put forward by Spain, the mystery play of Elche was classified by UNESCO as the “Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.
西班牙埃爾切神秘劇是有關(guān)死亡、幻想和童貞的神圣的音樂劇,是用音樂演唱的形式將圣母的死亡、升天和加冕搬上了埃爾切圣·瑪利亞大教堂的舞臺。自15世紀(jì)中葉以來,在羅馬教皇的特許下,該劇從未間斷過在埃爾切圣·瑪麗亞大教堂的演出。因此,它是中世紀(jì)歐洲宗教劇的一個(gè)鮮活的證明,也是在拜占庭習(xí)俗影響下,虔信圣母的中世紀(jì)文化的例證。該劇完全用演唱形式把圣母瑪利亞升天搬上了舞臺,全劇包括圣母死亡和加冕兩幕。劇本(收藏在1625年的劇本匯編中)用巴倫西亞方言寫成,中間穿插若干段拉丁文。一些歌曲明顯源自中世紀(jì)的抒情曲調(diào),間有文藝復(fù)興和巴洛克式的復(fù)調(diào)。舞臺布置分為兩部分:橫式舞臺代表“地”,豎式舞臺代表“天”,這是典型的中世紀(jì)神秘劇特點(diǎn)。每年約有300個(gè)志愿者投入演出工作。演出吸引著巴倫西亞全城居民,它與該城居民的文化和方言特性緊密相關(guān)。
早在1931年,埃爾切神秘劇就已被西班牙第二共和國宣布為“國家紀(jì)念碑”且受法律保護(hù),現(xiàn)在作為口頭遺產(chǎn)的埃爾切神秘劇遇到的威脅主要來自兩方面,一個(gè)是演出時(shí)背景和舞臺布置很難保存,一個(gè)是演出時(shí)采用的原先那種巴倫西亞語現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)絕大部分被卡斯蒂利亞語取代了。因此世界遺產(chǎn)的真實(shí)性、完整性受到了威脅。為保護(hù)這一文化遺產(chǎn),埃爾切市及自治區(qū)政府也做出了種種努力,現(xiàn)在神秘劇演員和歌唱家的培訓(xùn)機(jī)構(gòu)已經(jīng)建立起來。1990年,埃爾切市議會和巴倫西亞文化部組織了一個(gè)國際性的神秘劇音樂節(jié)。音樂節(jié)期間,人們觀看演出,組織研討。為更好的保留下神秘劇,埃爾切城市的一座神秘劇博物館開始建設(shè)。2001年,西班牙申報(bào)的埃爾切神秘劇被聯(lián)合國教科文組織批準(zhǔn)列入“人類口頭和非物質(zhì)文化遺產(chǎn)代表作名錄”。