The Emperor of the East
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The Emperor of the East is a Caroline era stage play, a tragicomedy written by Philip Massinger and first published in 1632.[1][2] The play provides an interesting example of the treatment of the Roman Catholic sacrament of confession in English Renaissance theatre.
The Emperor of the East was licensed for performance by Sir Henry Herbert, the Master of the Revels, on 11 March 1631. The play was performed by the King's Men at both of their theatres, the Blackfriars and the Globe; the company also acted the play at Court.
Publication
The play was published in quarto in 1632, printed by Thomas Harper for the London bookseller John Waterson.[3] Massinger dedicated the play to John Lord Mohun, Baron of Okehampton, one of his patrons. Mohun was the uncle of Massinger's friend Sir Aston Cockayne, who contributed a commendatory poem to the 1632 edition. Mohun was also the son-in-law of Lady Katherine Stanhope, to whom Massinger dedicated his play The Duke of Milan in 1623.