“In early modern England, attention to education on both the stage and the page flourished,” says Moncrief. “Much of that instruction, occurring in the wake of both humanist and Protestant religious reforms, was guided by printed texts that explored pedagogical methods and the purpose of education for both boys and girls. The essays in this collection question the extent to which education itself — an activity rooted in study and pursued in the home, classroom, and the church — led to, mirrored, and was perhaps even transformed by moments of instruction on stage.”
In addition to co-editing the book, Moncrief wrote one of its chapters and co-wrote another with McPherson. She focuses much of her research and teaching at Washington College on early modern English drama (Shakespeare and his contemporaries) and 16th- and 17th-century English literature and culture, with a special focus on gender and performance. She holds a B.A. from Doane College, an M.A. from the University of Nebraska, and a Ph.D. from the University of Iowa.