This study focuses on the imitative and contaminative creative practices of the Renaissance period, and specifically on how the work of classical authors and playwrights influenced the dramaturgy of Ben Jonson. By 'dramaturgy' I refer to the theories and practical choices that are made when composing a piece of drama, an art form that I see as a primarily intended for performance.1 In line with practice standard to Renaissance studies I generally use the term 'classical' in the non-technical manner to refer to the periods of history in which the Greek and Roman civilisations flourished, roughly from the mid-fifth century BC to the first century AD.