a few words from the reappearing Saint to persuade him to accept
Christianity.--Monologue and dialogue are throughout in song. The
following is one of the three verses in which the barbarian proclaims
his loss; the last two lines in the vernacular are the same for all.

Gravis sors et dura!
Hic reliqui plura,
Sed sub mala cura.
Des! quel dommage!
Qui pert la sue chose purque n'enrage.

A play of this sort, dealing with the wonder-working of a Saint, became
known as a Miracle Play, to differentiate it from the Mystery Plays
based on Bible stories.

_St. Nicholas_ would be performed in a church. But there is a probably
contemporaneous Norman Mystery Play, _Adam_, of unknown authorship,
which shows that the move from the church to the open air was already
being made. This play was performed just outside the church door, and
though the staging remains a matter of conjecture, it may be reasonably
assumed that the church represented Heaven, and that the three parts of
a projecting stage served respectively as Paradise (Eden), Earth, and
Hell (covered in, with side doors). The manuscript of the play (found at
Tours) supplies careful directions for staging and acting, as follows:

A Paradise is to be made in a raised spot, with curtains and cloths
of silk hung round it at such a height that persons in the Paradise
may be visible from the shoulders upwards. Fragrant flowers and
leaves are to be set round about, and divers trees put therein with
hanging fruit, so as to give the likeness of a most delicate spot.