Final answer:
The question refers to medieval trade and craft guilds that produced community plays using pageant carts, with the Master of Secrets enhancing performances with special effects. By the late 15th century, professional playwrights and actors received aristocratic patronage, with morality and mystery plays becoming commonplace in festivals like Corpus Christi.
Step-by-step explanation:
The incorporated associations of various trades and crafts in the town that would perform plays are referring to the medieval guilds that participated in the production of community plays, especially during the Middle Ages. These guilds would use temporary, mobile stages known as pageant carts when they performed outdoor pageants or religious dramas in local towns. A key figure in these performances was the Master of Secrets, an early special effects master responsible for creating spectacular theatrical effects such as fire, flying, or trapdoors to enhance the drama of the performances. In the late 15th century, a class of professional playwrights and actors emerged under the patronage of wealthy members of society, and plays often moved from being purely religious to incorporating secular elements, such as masques and mummers' plays.
Alongside religious organizations, guilds were essential in staging plays, especially during events like the Feast of Corpus Christi, where they performed mystery cycles and morality plays. However, it's worth noting that acting guilds faced unique challenges compared to other crafts and trades due to their nature. Elizabethan acting troupes, for example, required noble patronage to avoid legal repercussions, signifying protection and a stamp of approval for their work.