Mrs Isabelle Lepore-Thompson
Research Student
Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences
Biography
“Recovering England’s Earliest Recorded Miracle Play: Abbot Geoffrey de Gorron, Christina of Markyate and the Ludum de Sancta Katerina (c. 1097 – 1115)"
My research explores the development of drama before the thirteenth century, focusing on the Ludum de Sancta Katerina (c. 1097–1115), the earliest recorded miracle play in England. The play dramatised the legend of St Katherine of Alexandria and was produced under the auspices of Geoffrey de Gorron, sixteenth Abbot of St Albans (abb. 1119–1146), whose close friend and spiritual mentor was Christina of Markyate (c. 1096–1155). By closely examining the surviving medieval manuscripts that mention the Ludum, alongside evidence relating to Geoffrey's life and career, I seek to uncover new insights into this lost play, its origins, and how it may have been performed. I also compare these sources with near-contemporary hagiographical versions of St Katherine's Vita to better understand how prose and verse narratives could be adapted for performative purposes, thus contributing to broader discussions within medieval performance studies. A second strand of the project combines codicological and iconographic approaches to consider the relationship between devotional intention and performance. In particular, I examine the liturgical and performative functions of surviving artworks and textiles depicting St Katherine's martyrdom, exploring how visual culture may have shaped and reflected medieval devotional and dramatic practices.
About Isabelle Lepore-Thompson
Isabelle holds a BA in English and Related Literature from the University of York and an MA in Medieval and Early Modern Studies from Durham University. She began her part-time PhD in Medieval Studies in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at the Open University in 2024, funded by the Gender and Otherness in the Humanities Research Centre, and supervised by Professor M. A. Katritzky, Professor Elaine Moohan and Dr Charlotte Steenbrugge. Her research interests broadly comprise the cultural and architectural history of the medieval English Church, how manuscripts, hagiography, and performance intersect in twelfth-century England, and the study of women, gender, and identity in medieval society.
Experienced in both museum and archival settings, Isabelle has previously worked for the Yorkshire Museums Trust and volunteered in the archives at Durham University. She currently works part-time as a Learning Executive at St Albans Cathedral.
Supervisors
Professor Elaine Moohan, Professor of Musicology in the Department of Music
