76 A MEDIJEVAL CITY

the earth. Demons, in gaudy attire, came up from
the flame-region of the lowest storey; divine
messengers and personages came down from the
star and cloud adorned upper storey. The tiring-
room was below and behind the stage. The acting
was b\T members of the guilds. They, no doubt,
practised here, as elsewhere, the ranting delivery
of their speeches so denounced by Hamlet in his
critical address to the Players, whom he admonished
to speak " trippingly on the tongue " and not to
" out-Herod Herod." There are several references in
Shakespeare to these plays of the Middle Ages. For
instance, in Twelfth Night :

" Like to the old Vice

Who with dagger of lath
In his rage and his wrath,
Cries, Ah, ah 1 to the devil."

and in Henry V.:

" .- . ; this roaring devil i' the old play
that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger."

Stands for spectators were erected by private
enterprise for profit in many places in the city.
The general assembly, preparatory to the beginning
of the performanes , took place on Pageant Green,
now called Toft Green (which lies behind that side
of Micklegate which is opposite Holy Trinity).
The first performances were made at the gates of
Holy Trinity Priory (on the west side of the river) ;
there were four performances in Micklegate (a
street near the Priory) ; four in Coney Street (the
main street on the east side of the river)—and
likewise performances in other parts of the city.
The last three performances took place at the gates
of the Minster, in lyow Petergate, and in Pavement,
which was one of the city market squares,