Major playwrights:AeschylusAgamemnonSophoclesFocus on HubrisOedipus, AntigoneEuripidesMore violentMedea, The BacchaeAristophanesComic playwrightThe Frogs, The Birds, LysistrataGreek Theatre PracticeAll male actorsMax. of 3 actors on stage at a time, backed with a chorusExempt from military serviceChorugus funds and produces the playThe ChorusChorus made of 50-14 men (shrunk over time)Helps audience understand what’s happening (like a narrator)Also voice of reason for character, voice of discussionCould be minor characters (a mob, towns people, etc.)Ideal spectatorSpectacle, moved together and looked coolDancing – Strophe and AntistropheTheatre of DionysusLocated just below the Acropolis in AthensShows how important theatre was, it was central to the cityAlmost all thrust stagesCharacteristics of Greek TheatresBuilt into the hillsideSeating was high up (raked)Seated up to 15,000 peopleTheatronWhere the audience sits, means “seeing place”OrchestraCircular space where chorus danced, means “dancing place”Skene HouseBehind orchestra, at the back of the theatreUsed as a dressing room and for storageActors wait for ques thereAlso the scene’s backgroundFaçade StageOne single set that provides the backgroundParadosOn sides of Theatron“Entry Ways” for actors and chorusThymeleWe believe there was an alter, not sure where though, as this means alterSpecial EffectsThe EkkyklemaRevolving door on Skene House where wagon rolled to reveal something (typically dead bodies since all violence happened off stage)The MechaneCrane behind Skene house used for appearance of Gods and could fly people around the stageMusicLires, flutes, dancingCostumesTragedyBasic robes & accessories to show the characterComedy/SatyrPadded body suitsPhallus, might have indicated something about characterBoth forms wore MasksAllowed actors to play multiple charactersEmblems to communicate race, gender, jobMight have had built in megaphone for projectionChorus all costumed alike (human or mystical animal typically)Rome: 240 BC – 476 ADTakes over GreeceRoman TheatreNot built into hills, but looked like Greek theatres, just more elaborateAdopted from Greek DramaAll actors were male and maskedBUT in Rome, comedy was preferred, not tragedyAlso more like sit-com type comedyPerformed at festivals called “Ludi” which included other entertainmentsTheatre not as popular as it was in GreeceLudi“Give them bread & circuses!”Starts off as 11 days of entertainment for populous, by end of the empire Ludi lasts 100 daysFunctioned to show power of Rome and to keep citizens happy and to distract them from revoltingChristians fed to lions, gladiator fights, theatrePara Theatricals at LudiMimesGladiator battlesBestiariiBeasts from across Rome would be brought to fight each other and to fight peopleNaumachiaFlooded coliseum and had gladiators fight to the death naval battlesAnti-Theatrical Prejudice in RomeLudi were hyper violent and sexualizedChristians didn’t like this and took a stanceAlso didn’t like it because they were getting eaten by lions…Christians write about opposing theatreTertullian writes a famous essay on itHeading into the Medieval PeriodRome & Christianity go head to headConstantine (Catholic emperor) moves Roman capital to Constantinople and Rome crumblesApprox. 500 years pass without theatre since the Church and hierarchy ruledMedieval TheatreAround 10 AD, Church begins to bring back theatre to use for biblical teachingsQuem Quaeritis – 925 ADEastern Biblical stuffTheatre almost exclusively religiousMost plays signed “Annonymous” because it’s not about the glory of the playwright, it’s about the glory of God.Involves a lot of spectacleHell’s MouthWhale’s jawbone typically made to show the entrance to HellHell is shown as unappealing while heaven is shown to be very appealingPageant WagonParade floats made by a group, built to make scenes of biblical stories. Paraded around tons of storiesHroswitha of GandersheimFirst documented women playwrightWas a nun who modeled Roman comedyChristian themes usually triumphed in the end of her playsRenaissance or Rebirth: 14th Century - 17th CenturyRebirth of the teachings of Greece and Rome, return to gloryUnfolds early on in Italy, eventually spreads across EuropeReturns to the classics of Greece in Rome in art, architecture, etc.Human beings are also of value and can do a lotValue humanism and free willProtestant Reformation and Anglican Church ariseAge of Trade & ExplorationGutenberg & the Printing Press (1454)Bibles printed in the vernacularA lot of stage craft and theatre buildingPlays mostly copied from Greece and RomeTheatres are very ornate and architecture is crazyPerspective and vanishing points utilizedElizabethan England (1558-1603)In 1588 the English defeat the Spanish Armada and naval power shifts, making England the dominant world powerReligious stability, Elizabeth secures Anglican powerQueen Elizabeth and King James were huge art patrons who allowed people like Shakespeare to flourishTheatre becomes commercialIt’s about making money!For profit theatre risesPerformed during the dayBalcony seating, non raked stage, tiered seatingCrowd made of commonersElizabethan Staging PracticePublic vs. Private TheatresPrivate had less commoners and was allowed year-round performances as they were indoor theatresPublic theatres were outside and full of commonersTheatres were located in the South Bank in London, which was the entertainment districtThe Globe TheatrePublic theatre with a polygon shape, not a circle, just a lot of sidesPartial roof covering the galley seatingMultiple levels, held up to 2,500Yard in front of the stageGroundlings or cheap seats were located thereVery poor couldn’t afford plays and the very wealthy had plays come to themRaised Thrust StageTrapsBacked by Tiring House (Façade stage)Used as a backdrop and for actors to be off stageHeavensUnder awning above the stage heavens were paintedWay of showing they were part of a larger cosmologyDiscovery space, plays demanded itStage was bare, essentially scene location and setup was said in the lines by the actorsPlays done only during the dayFor Profit TheatreThe first time for commercial theatre ever! Shakespeare wants to make money!Sharing companies = Theatre companiesActingAll male castsDeclamatory acting styleLimited rehearsal timeSides (Actor just received his lines, not whole script)Contemporary costumesWilliam Shakespeare (1564-1616)Born in Stratford on the
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