Hans Folz

German dramatist

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June 26, 2026

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Hans Folz was a German playwright active in the mid-15th century, known for his contributions to the Fastnachtsspiel tradition. The Fastnachtsspiel was a secular German dramatic form that emerged in the 15th century, often featuring broad farce and elements of morality plays, reflecting the tastes of a bourgeois audience. These plays frequently included satire and ribald humor. Folz, along with Hans Rosenplüt, were prominent playwrights of this form, with their plays characterized by formless, uninhibited comedy and often featuring a fool character.1

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Fastnachtsspiel
…his younger contemporary, the barber Hans Folz of Worms, who also settled in Nürnberg, were the most notable Fastnachtsspiele playwrights in the mid-15th century. Their plays were formless, uninhibited comedy, usually featuring the traditional character of the Narr, or fool, in the leading role. In the 16th century the plays…
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…his younger contemporary, the barber Hans Folz of Worms, who also settled in Nürnberg, were the most notable Fastnachtsspiele playwrights in the mid-15th century. Their plays were formless, uninhibited comedy, usually featuring the traditional character of the Narr, or fool, in the leading role. In the 16th century the plays…
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meistersinger
These deadening restrictions led Hans Folz, a barber-surgeon from Worms (d. c. 1515), to persuade the Nürnberg Singschule to permit a wider range of subjects and the composition of new tunes. These reforms, adopted elsewhere, restored some life to the Singschulen; henceforth, a member, having passed through the grades…
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These deadening restrictions led Hans Folz, a barber-surgeon from Worms (d. c. 1515), to persuade the Nürnberg Singschule to permit a wider range of subjects and the composition of new tunes. These reforms, adopted elsewhere, restored some life to the Singschulen; henceforth, a member, having passed through the grades…
Read More