Fabula de Sphaerae

"The Play of the Spheres" is a form of performative storytelling that employs a number of archetypical characters in fantastical and often comedic situations that resolve to portray a specific message or moral. The archetypes are portrayed in these stories by specific masks that are often of animals or monsters. These archetypes are referred to as the "Players" and act in a predictable set manner within the story. For instance; the Trickster will always play a trick on one of the characters at least once during the story while the Fool will always be lied to or otherwise deceived by one of the characters. Part of the comedy of these plays is the audience's knowledge of what each mask means and expectation of the role that will play in the story.

Plays
While there are a few popular plays which a troop may perform, part of the appeal of the Fabula de Sphaerae format is the ease of which bards can create their own stories using the characters and audience's knowledge of the characters. Performing a Play of the Spheres allows a troop to introduce a fresh story, while still drawing an audience with the promise of seeing their favorite characters in action.

Plays of the Spheres are mostly used as lighthearted or comedic performances that draw a crowd and guarantee a troop at least a little bit of coin. However, it has also historically been used to send political messages either as propaganda or as a call to revolution. The Fool character has often taken the role of a king in plays by those trying to comment on the state of the government, while a king character may also wear the mask of the Hero in plays sponsored by the crown.

The Fabula de Sphaera is traditionally performed by a troop of actors and musicians, but individual bards may still sing ballad versions of the more popular plays, though these are abridged versions of the plays and lack the benefit of the masks. Alternatively, some bards will carry a collection of the masks on their person and attempt to perform the plays themselves or with a partner, playing all of the characters simultaneously. This takes a lot of skill and an be hilarious when done well, but are so rarely done well.

Popular plays that are replayed over and over are:


 * Bayun and the Three Gold: a play about the Fool character stumbling through comedic situations while trying to earn money without losing the three gold pieces his brother lent him.
 * The Thief and The Crow: a play about a clever Thief character outsmarting Death itself.
 * She Who Leapt the Moon: a play about the Wanderer character tasked to help a small village defeat an evil monster.
 * The Moon Sword: a play about a commoner leading a revolution against a corrupt king presented as a historical account.