The Golden Age of
Ancient Greek
Theater
the origins of drama
The Origins Of Drama
 The Dances Celebrating Dionysus
soon evolved into dramas (or,
plays).
 The story goes: Thespis, a popular
writer of Songs, is said to have
invented drama when he asked one
“performer” to stand outside the
chorus to engage in some “call and
response.”
Word Origin
 The modern
word
“thespian,”
meaning actor,
comes from the
name Thespis.
The Chorus
 Because of the Musical
origins of Greek drama, the
plays featured Choruses.
 The chorus danced and
either sung or chanted
their lines.
Functions of the chorus
 an agent: gives advice, asks, takes part
 establishes ethical framework, sets up
standard by which action will be judged
 ideal spectator - reacts as playwright
hopes audience would
 sets mood and heightens dramatic
effects
 adds movement, spectacle, song, and
dance
 rhythmical function - pauses / paces the
action so that the audience can reflect.
Word Origin
 The modern word
“drama” comes from the
Greek word dran
meaning "to do”
 The Greeks understood
the role of action in
plays.
The Theater of Dionysus
The
Theatre
of
Dionysus
 The first plays were performed in
the Theatre of Dionysus, built in the
shadow of the Acropolis in Athens
at the beginning of the 5th century,
 These theatres proved to be so
popular they soon spread all over
Greece.
Amphitheatres
Amphitheatres
 Plays were performed outdoors.
 The side of the mountain was
scooped out into a bowl shape,
something like our amphitheaters
today, and tiers of stone seats in
semi-circles were built on the hill.
 These theatres often seated as many
as 20,000 spectators, with a special
first row being reserved for
dignitaries.
Theatron
 The theatron (literally, "viewingplace") is where the spectators sat.
The theatron was usually part of
hillside overlooking the orchestra,
and often wrapped around a large
portion of the orchestra.
Word Origin
 The modern word
“theater” comes
from the Greek
word theatron
meaning "seeing
place"
Orchestra
 The orchestra (literally, "dancing
space") was
normally
circular. It was
a level space
where the chorus
would dance, sing,
and interact with
the actors who were on the stage (called
the Proskenion) in front of the skene. In
the center of the orchestra there was
often an altar.
Skene
 The skene (literally,
"tent") was the
building directly in
back of the stage,
and was usually
decorated as a
palace, temple, or
other building,
depending on the
needs of the play. It
had at least one set
of doors, and
actors could make
entrances and exits
through them.
Parados
 The parodoi (literally, "passageways")
are the paths by which the chorus and
some actors (such as those
representing messengers or people
returning from abroad) made their
entrances and exits.
The Actors
 All of the actors were
men. Women were not
allowed to participate.
 The actors played multiple
roles, so a wooden, cork,
or linen mask was used to
show the change in
character or mood.
Staging
 All killing had to occur off
stage and be reported to the
audience by the chorus or a
messenger.
 The deus-ex-machina was a
crane-like device occasionally
used for lowering in a god to
assist the protagonist in
neatly solving his problems.
The City Dionysia Festival
 In the sixth century BC, the
Athenian ruler, Pisistratus,
established the 'City Dionysia', a
festival of entertainment held
in honor of the god Dionysus.
 This festival featured
competitions in music, singing,
dance and poetry.
 Playwrights presented a series
of three tragedies, or a trilogy.
Communal Involvement
 The entire city would be in
attendance.
 All other businesses not directly
involved with the 6-day festival
would shut down, so that everyone
could attend.
 The government even offered
financial assistance to those who
could not afford to attend.
Types of Greek Drama
 Comedy
 Tragedy
 Satyr
 Comedy and tragedy were the most
popular types of plays in ancient
Greece. Hence, the modern
popularity of the comedy and
tragedy masks to symbolize
theatre.
Traits of Tragedy
 Late point of attack
 Violence and death occurred
offstage
 Frequently used messengers to
relate information
 Stories based on myth or history, but
varied interpretations of events
 Focus was on psychological and
ethical attributes of characters,
rather than physical and
sociological.
structure of a tragedy
 Prologue, which describes the situation
and sets the scene
 Parados, an ode sung by the chorus as it
made its entrance
 Five dramatic scenes, or episodes--the
last of which is called the Epilogue
 Each episode is followed by a stasimon, a
choral ode, an exchange of laments by
the chorus and the protagonist. (This
ode is sometimes called a komos.)
 Exodus, the climax and conclusion
Sophocles
(496-406 bc)
 His plays are more
character-driven rather
plays that heavily use the
chorus
 He is credited with adding a
third character
 His works include: Oedipus
Rex & Antigone
The Final Curtain
 By the time of Sophocles' death in 406
BC the golden era of Greek drama
was ending.
 Athens was overrun in 404 BC by the
Spartans, and was later torn apart by
constant warring with other city
states, eventually falling under the
dominion of Alexander the Great and
his Macedonian armies.
 Theatre went on but did not return to
the same creative heights until
Elizabethan England two millennia
later.