thumb|Medieval pageant of the [[Palio di Legnano]]
A medieval pageant is a form of procession traditionally associated with both secular and religious rituals, often with a narrative structure. Pageantry was an important aspect of medieval European seasonal festivals, in particular around the celebration of Corpus Christi, which began after the thirteenth century. This festival reenacted the entire history of the world, in processional performance, from the Bible's Genesis to the Apocalypse, employing hundreds of performers and mobile scenic elements. Plays were performed on mobile stages, called waggons, that traveled through towns so plays could be watched consecutively. Each waggon was sponsored by a guild who wrote, designed, and acted in the plays.
20th century revival
The form was revived in the early 20th century by the English dramatist Louis N. Parker, who staged the Sherbourne Pageant in 1905, followed by the Warwick Pageant in 1906. The success of these productions led to a proliferation of pageant plays in England in the following decades. Modern pageants depicted not just religious stories and themes, but rural life and local history as well. Notable authors of modern pageant plays include E. M. Forster and T. S. Eliot. They include:
In Belgium:
- Ducasse d'Ath
- Ducasse de Mons
- Meyboom of Brussels
- Ommegang van Dendermonde
- Ommegang van Mechelen
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In France:
- Cassel: Reuze Papa and Reuze Maman
- Douai: Gayant, Marie Cagenon, Fillon, Jacquot, Binbin
- Pézenas: le Poulain
- Tarascon: la Tarasque
Also see
Mystery play - Medieval plays focused on the presentation of Bible stories in churches as tableaux with accompanying antiphonal song.