(1468–1473) Moralité (1486) - Henri Baude L'Homme pécheur (morality) (1494) La Farce du cuvier La Farce nouvelle du pâté et de la tarte In the 15th century, the public representation of plays was organized and controlled by a number of professional and semi-professional guilds: Clercs de la Basoche (Paris) - Morality plays Enfants sans Souci (Paris) - Farces and Sotties Conards (Rouen) Confrérie de la Passion (Paris) - Mystery plays Genres of theatre practiced in the Middle Ages in France: Farce - a realistic, humorous, and even coarse satire of human failings Sottie - generally a conversation among idiots ("sots"), full of puns and quidproquos Pastourelle - a play with a pastoral setting Chantefable - a mixed verse and prose form only found in "Aucassin et Nicolette" Mystery play - a depiction of the Christian mysteries or Saint's lives Morality play Miracle play Passion play Sermon Joyeux - a burlesque sermon Renaissance theatre 16th-century French theatre followed the same patterns of evolution as the other literary genres of the period. For the first decades of the century, public theatre remained largely tied to its long medieval heritage of mystery plays, morality plays, farces, and soties, although the miracle play was no longer in vogue. Public performances were tightly controlled by a guild system. The guild "les Confrères de la Passion" had exclusive rights to theatrical productions of mystery plays in Paris; in 1548, fear of violence or blasphemy resulting from the growing religious rift in France forced the Paris Parliament to prohibit performances of the mysteries in the capital, although they continued to be performed in other places. Another guild, the "Enfants Sans-Souci" was in charge of farces and soties, as too the "Clercs de la Basoche" who also performed morality plays. Like the "Confrères de la Passion", "la Basoche" came under political scrutiny (plays had to be authorized by a review board; masks or characters depicting living persons were not permitted), and they were finally suppressed in 1582. By the end of the century, only the "Confrères de la Passion" remained with exclusive control over public theatrical productions in Paris, and they rented out their theatre at the Hôtel de Bourgogne to theatrical troupes for a high price. In 1597, they abandoned this privilege. Alongside the numerous writers of these traditional works (such as the farce writers Pierre Gringore, Nicolas de La Chesnaye and André de la Vigne), Marguerite