Greek and Roman 1 What conditions did theatre emerge from a Focusing on 534 BCE 146 BCE b Artifacts Physical items we are able to dig up or pull out of ruins concrete evidence Vases pottery statues etc c Ruins Physical structures buildings that have remained over time things we can look at that we can extract information from What buildings were meant for Somebody saw something or experiences something and wrote d Primary Sources it down A record that has continued through the ages Potential issue is that reliability is somewhat in question o Whether someone was lying or fabricating things o Also could be taken out of context o Quoted over and over becoming wrong o Mistranslation e Play Texts f Polytheism 37 complete plays Very small selection of what really was a part of the society Not entirely sure why the 37 plays survived Belief in more than one god and belief in many gods Dionysus god of theatre Theatre tend to be done at festivals in honor of Dionysus g Patriachal h Competition Men lead made decisions Men may have exclusively done theatre Olympics Massive competitions Competitions also existed in theatre o Best play o Best play wright o Best actors o And more i Beauty and harmony Idealized symmetry in beautiful buildings j Humanism Idealizes human body mainly male statues Tension between humans and their abilities to affect their own fates Gods constantly arguing and reeking havoc on humankind k Agon Debate Plays dramatized the great tragedies Designed to get audience thinking Connects to their love of democracy Protagonist antagonist Love of debate in society and ancient Greece l Politics Athens o Cultural stronghold o Arts philosophy rhetoric science math theatre Sparta o Physical prowess o Soldiers athletes strength body 2 What was theatre s function in ancient Greece a Large outdoor theatres Seated 10 15000 people Theatre of Dionysus seated 17000 people Theatre at Epidaurus o Theatre ruin Theatres made out of stone Built in a hillside and the seats are built into a hill Called a raked audience b Audiences 15 000 17 000 Audience decorum o Usually at the theatre all day o See three tragedies all day long Audiences talked about issues being raised in the play Definitely included citizen men Maybe women and slaves but not much evidence primary sources Acropolis was center of politics and religion Theatre right below it shows how important it was c Greek theatre Diagram Orchestra orchestra o Dancing place o Where actors preformed o The stage Theatron o Viewing place o Audience would sit here Parados o Passageways that go along side of the theatron d City Dionysia o Where audiences members go to their seats o Entrances and exits Skene o Tent o No remaining records o Costume house scenery dramatic reveal spectacle o Place where actors would go to change clothing Giant festival in honor of Dionysus annually Where theatre really began Reason we know theater was born here at 534 BCE was because Thespis first actor stepped out of chorus In 534 BCE Thespis won an award for acting Parian marble is the record of this 534 BCE very important year birth of western theatre City dedicated to fertility and spring Structure of festival o 7 days o First 3 days parades sacrifices purifications very religious o Last 4 days dedicated to theatre o Days 4 6 Tragedies and Satyr plays a Playwright would write 3 tragedies b Satyr play are usually a little happier and lighter c Satyrs connected to Dionysus o Day 7 Comedies a 4 6 playwrights would come in e Lenaia Festival dedicated to comedy 3 What form did theatre take in ancient Greece a Three major Tragedians b Aeschylus 534 456 BCE Most respected of tragic playwrights by ancient Greek Added a second actor o Allowed actors engage in dialogue Famous for a trilogy called The Oresteia o Consist of 3 plays o Agamenon o The libation Bearers o The Eumenides Aeschylus had a big bald head and all of a sudden something hit him on the head and killed him a bird dropped a turtle on his head c Sophocles 495 406 BCE Oedipus Plays Added the third actor Acted too but retired because voice was not strong enough Oedipus Rex is basis for Aristotle s Poetics o Aristotle would say this is the best play of all time d Euripides 480 406 BCE Not very popular in ancient Greece Bad boy of Greek tragedians More daring and risqu content such as orgies and cannibalism Very popular in modern day because it aged well e How does a play move form playwrights brain to the stage Play Wright didaskolos teacher Playwright considered a teacher because he taught audiences Directed the show Playwright would choreograph the play and plan music guide actors did everything that a director does and wrote the play Process o A month after festival new ideas would be pitched o Committee would decide which days would be devoted to a playwright if he was good enough o 11 months to realize trilogy Choregos producer o Paid for everything o A huge honor and a civic duty o Would bankrupt selves and family to put up best play o Some would be assigned to different roles and some would be assigned to theatre Chorus was very elaborate o People who were in chorus may have been soldiers or possible other job o Chorus may have moved like line guard with their rifles f The chorus in performance Sounding board Question and comment to introduce new ideas Ideal spectator o Same questions an audience member might have had may have been introduced by the chorus members as well Balance debate Would encourage audience to ask questions and engage as well g Chorus size Started with 50 Aeschylus Chorus shrunk as main actors grew Shrunk to 12 15 Euripides Connected to how many actors were on stage h Masks Masks were used by actors to denote different characters So actor could play more than one person Masks also make it possible to project their voices as loudly as possible Importance of voice o Voice a way to convey emotion o Because theatres were so large audience wouldn t be able to see facial expressions o Had to do emotions with their body and voice Masks made it possible to hear arguments and debates No focus on realism o No priority to realism o Representative o Symbolic and place for debate All men played all roles No violence on stage o Theatre is a place for discussion not violence that escalates people to an emotional place Special effects o Ekkyklema a Large cart wagon b Would be stacked with bodies or people c Then wheeled out on stage to show importance o Medea murders both children to show husband to