It's nearly always commissioned by the king to be performed at court before a private audience of select nobility, it's commissioned by an aristocratic family to be performed at the aristocratic family's estate to honor or to celebrate a specific occasion.

它几乎是由国王指派,去庭院表演给一部分贵族的，它是由一个贵族家庭指派,在贵族家族的房子里表演,是去庆祝一个特定场合的。

耶鲁公开课 - 弥尔顿课程节选