The News from the World was inspired by the mystery plays which were performed by the citizens of towns and cities throughout medieval England. The central aim of these performances was to tell of man's salvation through Christ and to do so they drew on Biblical events from both the Old and New Testaments; but they were also festive occasions performed by and for the community in an up-to-date manner and so a host of invented characters and scenes were created to give ample opportunities to the various acting groups to display their talents and to bring the story home to everyone's door.
The first scene is about the Creation; we see the human race coming into existence but Lucifer and the devils tempt them away from their blissful state into a frenzy of empire building in which they almost destroy themselves. But when all is doom and gloom a star appears and the rest, as they say, is history.
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