Mucedorus

This was the hit of the Elizabethan age: the most widely printed play of its era, performed sixteen times in quarto between 1598 and 1668, and staged for both Queen Elizabeth I and King James I. Mucedorus is a shepherd, but not really. He's actually the prince of Valencia, hiding his royal identity to win Amadine, the daughter of the King of Aragon, on her own terms rather than through courtly obligation. What follows is a delightful cascade of misunderstandings: a cowardly rival noble, a ferocious bear, and a wild man named Bremo who actually captures the princess. Mucedorus heroically saves the day, identities are revealed, and love conquers all. The play lives in fascinating limbo, attributed to Shakespeare, Greene, Peele, and Lodge by various scholars over centuries, yet belonging fully to none of them. It doesn't matter. What matters is that this is pure Elizabethan crowd-pleasing: romance, adventure, disguise, and a happy ending delivered with theatrical flair. If you want to understand what the Globe audience actually cheered for, this is the play.