Greek Drama
S
Drama was born in ancient Greece!
S 600s B.C. - Greeks were giving choral performances of
dancing and singing
S Performances at festivals honoring Dionysus
S Later they held drama
contests to honor him
Thespis (534 B. C.)
S First “actor”
S Introduced art of acting a part on stage
S dramatic impersonation of another character
S Uncertain whether he was a playwright, an actor, or a priest
S “Thespian” term comes from his name
Description of Greek Theater
S Took place in large hillside amphitheaters
S held as many as 15,000 to 20,000 people!!
S Players included a chorus and their leader
S Lines were chanted rather than spoken
S Chorus performed in an “orchestra”, not on a raised
platform
Greek Theater (continued)
S Masks used to represent characters
S High-soled boots worn to add height
S Both of these limited movement
Greek Theater
Most Important Era (400s B.C.)
S Tragedies performed as part of a civic
celebration called the City Dionysia
S Festival lasted several days
S Prizes given for best tragedy, comedy,
acting, and choral singing
Theater of Dionysus
S Located on slope below the Acropolis
in Athens
S Seated 14,000 +
S Circular acting area called orchestra
S Skene (stage house)
The Physical Structure of the Greek
Theater
Greek Tragedy
S Nearly all surviving tragedies are based on myth
S Character’s struggle against hostile forces ended in defeat
and ultimately in death
S A series of dramatic episodes separated by choral odes
(mini-songs).
S Episodes performed by a few actors - never more than 3 on
stage
Greek Drama (continued)
S Wore masks to indicate the nature of the characters played.
S Men played women’s roles
S Same actor appeared in several parts.
S Of the hundreds of Greek tragedies written, fewer than 35
survive.
Greek Tragedy
The Three Greek Tragedians:
1. Aeschylus - his are the oldest surviving plays - began
competing in 449 at Dionysus Theatre. Most of his plays
were part of trilogies.
2. Sophocles: (496-406 B.C.) won 24 contests, never lower
than 2nd; believed to have introduced the 3rd actor; fixed the
chorus at 15 (had been 50).
3. Euripides (480-406 B.C.) very popular in later Greek times,
little appreciated during his life sometimes known as "the
father of melodrama".
Three Playwrights
S Aeschylus
S Most famous for Oresteia
S Introduced concept of second actor
S Expanded possibilities for plot
Sophocles
S Innovation of the third actor
S Most famous for Oedipus Rex
Euripides
S Created the ultimate form of drama
S Far more naturalistic or human approach in his works
S Showed interest in psychology through portraits of women
S Medea is most famous work
S Describes how a mother kills her children to gain
S
revenge against their father
Euripides (continued)
S Medea is most famous work
S Describes how a mother kills her children to gain revenge
against their father