Editorial
Members of the editorial team for Early Theatre regularly participate in events at academic conferences to answer questions about the submission and peer review process. Whether speaking on panels and roundtables or at meet-the-editor events, we seek out promising research projects and encourage scholars to send their work to this journal. Through these and other efforts, we try to ensure that, whether scholars are working on an under-explored area of medieval or early modern drama, performance, or theatre history or bringing fresh eyes to a much-discussed play, Early Theatre remains first and foremost a venue that supports them.
The contents of this issue make apparent that work published by individual researchers relies upon an infrastructure of support for and discussion of emerging ideas. Note how often authors of articles acknowledge their pieces originated in Shakespeare Association of America seminars, received support from library fellowships, and were shaped by feedback on drafts from peers. These written thanks serve as a reminder that the best research emerges from a network of scholars, just as the contents of these articles — discussing the importance of sources, patrons, and co-authors to the creation and performance of plays — suggest drama and performance existed in a network of creators. Some of this issue’s article authors thank the anonymous readers who reviewed their submissions to Early Theatre. We are pleased to be able to facilitate supportive peer review processes that foster excellence in published research.
Our goal when publishing reviews of monographs, essay collections, and editions of plays is to encourage similarly supportive engagement. That is, we ask reviewers to provide our readers with information about what the work being discussed sets out to do, evaluating a publication in terms of its stated goals before providing fair critiques and overviews of limitations. An anthology of plays for classroom use is not the same as a short monograph is not the same as an essay collection is not the same as a book for a general audience, but all of these types of work, if they focus on early theatre, merit our readers’ attention. We hope that the ten book reviews appearing in this issue, each provided by an author who admiringly holds up a book for further consideration, help our readers to discover new ideas and resources that can push their research, teaching, and thinking in new directions. [End Page 7]
A single issue of a peer-reviewed journal like Early Theatre represents the efforts of many contributors undertaking varied types of work to both participate in and nurture a diverse, engaged academic community. We can already see how this project benefits from the talents of our newly expanded editorial team, including our new book review co-editors Mark Kaethler and Lauren Weindling. Issues in Review sections under development for future issues will feature still more varied perspectives. We welcome additional submissions and queries from prospective contributors as we seek to make this journal a venue in which researchers feel their work can not only be published but also celebrated. [End Page 8]
