1
5th Grade Lesson 1
Introduction to Greek Theatre
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
(Formatted for use as lecture notes if desired)
Prior to classroom discussion:
Ask Teachers about these things:
Map of Greece
Teacher:
Teacher:
figure
Teacher:
Teacher:
Music:
Art Teacher general chorus masks.
poem that tells a story
recent story read about historical
story that has a sad ending
story that has a happy ending
song that tells a story
GREEK THEATRE Introduction
Today we are going to explore theatre in Ancient Greece.
Our time frame is the period from about the 7th century BCE
to about the 4th century B.C.E. which denotes the time before
the Christian Era. Explain that BCE is the way historians
refer to the time before Jesus.
Q. How many years ago would
700 years BCE be?
A. 2708
We are only introducing you to a tiny bit of the
history about Greek Theatre, and we believe these
pieces are the most factual. However, there are many
people (other ancient writers & critics) who might
disagree with this interpretation of history.
This is because we don’t have a lot of written documents
to explore in order to learn about The Greeks. Just a lot
of fragments mostly on stone or marble tablets.
But what we will be telling you is accepted by most historians.
It’s difficult to know for sure because the Ancient Greeks
tended to mix fact and fiction. They loved their stories about
the many gods and goddesses they believed were just like
2
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
real people. Their ideals were born out of fiction (Homer),
such as their concept of the hero which shapes much of
the lives of those in Classical Greece. They did, however,
much later, defined the differences.
Q. Where is Greece?
Find it on the map.
The Greeks were located in a very mountainous region.
This area divided people into different valleys.
Making a huge empire would be too difficult because
of the geography, so they had many different city-states.
The Mediterranean and the Aegean Sea also surrounded
them.
>> Point out on map
You might want to use Grove & Jay as examples of
city states, but explain that they would have their
own government, their own armies, reporting to no
one outside their cities, etc. A fun comparison.
The ancient Greeks’ civilization has influenced ours
very much. They made long-lasting contributions in the
areas of art, architecture, drama, math, science &
medicine, and philosophy and politics
Q. What did the Greeks give to
sports?
A. the Olympics
Review: Reasons for drama and theatrical events:
Last year, in 4th grade, we explored how & why primitive
man used drama and theatre.
Answers:
to entertain and give pleasure to each other
to influence events --many that he didn’t understand—
such as the return of spring and food, the buffalo,
try to keep the powers that effected them happy.
to educate the children—pass down traditions and skills
to glorify or give praise to a supernatural power
Q. Do you remember the
reasons?
3
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
Q. Do you remember any
of the events or ideas
A.
that primitive man
dramatized?
Inventing the wheel,
Discovering fire,
Killing a bear,
Inviting spring,
Protecting family from
attack of the enemy.
Teaching the young to
hunt buffalo
And, remember that drama emerged as part of some
other kind of activity, usually religious, or an attempt
to perform magical act because primitive man believed
in magic since they couldn’t explain what was happening
in the world around them.
Relationship to Greek Theatre:
For the ancient Greeks, plays were performed as part of
religious festivals also. They used drama for many of the
same reasons.





To entertain,
to teach,
to communicate,
to motivate action,
and to praise their gods.
Greek Theatre began, so we think, to honor one of their gods
Dionysus, god of all growing things in nature, and the
pleasures that these things brought to them.
(You may have to remind students that we are talking
about a time B.C.E. when most people on earth thought
there were many gods. We are discussing Ancient History.)
4
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
Review: Types of Theatres
Q. Remember the main types of
stages?
A. Proscenium, Thrust, in-theround…and variations.
>> Post picture of Greek
Theatre.
Q. What is the name of this
kind of theatre?
A. Thrust/Arena
The first Greek Theatre was performed from wagons in
the villages, just as in early entertainment for centuries
before & after the Greeks and even in this country.
Then, they began using the religious spaces just as
primitive man did, except the Greeks had big festivals
during the year. We know that because there are lots of
ruins and theatres that still exist and some writing that
explains their use.
These spaces were huge, holding 18,000– 25,000 people.
At the Greek Festivals everyone got off work, there was
no school, and even the criminals were let out of prison
to attend the Festivals. Women, according to some
historians, were also part of the audience, but that is
debated by other historians.
Can you imagine how loud and rowdy those audience
must have been. They probably didn’t have the manners
that you have been taught.
Q. Have you seen pictures, or
read about the salesmen and
entertainers in the American
wild west who sold their
show and wares from a
wagon?
5
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
Relationship to Greek Theatre
When you look at a picture of an ancient Greek/Roman
theatre you may think of it as an arena style, because
of the circle the entire thing makes. However, it is a mix
of an Arena style and a thrust stage.
The Greeks called them Theatrons.
Space influences the kind of theatrical performance that
can be held. And since the Greeks were used to celebrating
their religion in these Theatrons, it was natural that they
should use them for other kinds of rituals and performances.
Theatron: literally, “viewing-places” where the spectators sat.
>> Use picture to show
1) usually part of a hillside in the open air’;
2) built in a semi-circular shape with rows of tiered
stone or wooden seating; Spectators in the 5th c
probably sat on cushions or boards, but by the
4th century the theatron had marble seats
3) overlooking the orchestra and often wrapped around
a large portion of the orchestra.
The actors were probably not seen very well but they could
be heard very well because of the way the Theatron was built
..like a bowl.
Orchestra: literally, “dancing space” – normally circular.
A level space where the chorus would dance, sing,
and in later Greek theatre interact with the actors.
The orchestra was made of hard earth, but later paved
with marble and other materials. In center of the orchestra
there was often an altar. The stage was a raised area
within this circle. The orchestra of the theater of Dionysus
in Athens was about 60 feet in diameter.
Parados: literally, “passageways”…the paths by which
the chorus and some characters (messengers or people
returning from abroad) made their entrances and exits.
The audience also used them to enter and exit the theater.
Skenes: literally,” tent”—a building directly behind the
6
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
stage, which was only about 2 or 3 steps above the level
of the orchestra and perhaps 25 ft wide and 10 feet deep.
The skene was 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.
There was also access to the roof of the skene from behind,
so that actors playing gods and other characters such as
Watchmen could appear on the roof.
Review: Collaborative process
Q. Can you name some of the
roles that people have when
putting on a play?
Be sure that they get:
Playwright
Producer
Actor
Director
Choreographer
others:
Designers
Technicians
Stage Manager
Props Coordinator
Make-up
Relationship to Greek Theatre:
PLAYWRIGHT
Writers of plays are “practical”, whether a primitive shaman
or a Greek poet, or a contemporary writer. That is, they
write or create stories that:
1) people in their audiences will know and understand,
just as the shamans did for early man and writers
do today. They told stories with moral lessons such as
Aesops’ Fables.
7
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
Q. Do you know one of Aesop’s
fables:
(probably the Tortoise & the
Hare)
2) They told stories for the acting talent available to them.
So, poets were there first actors because the Greeks
valued this form of language and the people understood poetry.
Q. Do you know a poem that tells
a story?
Q. Since most people didn’t read
how do you think they
learned the stories?
A. By the spoken word, just as
your family may tell you
stories about your ancestors.
These word-of-mouth stories were passed on through
centuries before they were ever written down, so
they probably changed a lot from the first telling.
>>>Remind them of the game,
gossip.
3) They also wrote stories that could be performed in
available space which were where religious festivals
were performed.
But they told these stories a bit differently than you
might expect.
Let’s pause a moment and learn something that influences
why a playwright in Ancient Greece wrote the way he did.
In the year 508, under the leadership of a man named
Cleisthenes, the people of Athens, one of the city-states,
created a new form of government very different from
the one they had lived under for centuries. It was called
Demokratia, or as we call it now, democracy. It meant
rule by the people. Every man (except slaves)..and no
women… could cast a vote on decisions that effected
8
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
their city state.
Now, if you wanted to publicly argue or present you
opinions and ideas in this “direct democracy,” you had
better be good at public speaking. The Greeks thought
the art of public speaking was a very important skill
in public and private life. So, Oratory was a major
part of education.
Q. Have you done some oratory
yourself? Given a talk or told
a story in class…in front of
others.
If they were for a certain way of thinking, they were
“protagonists.” If they were against the issues, they
were “antagonists.” Notice that the same Greek
word is part of both: “agon” which means struggle.
These words are still used today to describe the
characters in a play. The Pro-tagonist tries to make
certain things happen. They “drive” the action. The
Ant-agonist tries to block what is wanted by the protagonist.
So, let’s see… The Greek writers wrote in ways their
audiences would understand and since poetry was very
important to them as was public speaking, their
stories were mostly “orated” in verse/poetry.
So, let’s put these things together: 1) religious festivals
2) story telling in verse, and 3) oratory, and we have
a glimpse of early Greek Theatre. Let’s explore their
theatre a bit more.
The Chorus
The Greek stories were told by a chorus of people,
not just a shaman or medicine man, and they were
told in not only verse, but in song and dance as well.
They were a group of people that represented a collective
crowd, such as townspeople. This chorus would
express itself in long passages that took place between
the main scenes of the play. They were musical in
nature. The lines were delivered as singing or chanting
poetry and were accompanied by patterns of movement.
They gave honor to and worshipped one of their gods,
Dionysus, through ceremonies of poetry, music, and
dance. And, they wore masks.
9
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
Q. How many of you sing in a
chorus?
In school, in church?
Q. Do you like stories told
through music? Can you
name one?
The Chorus members were volunteers from the village
or city just like people are who participate in The
Playmakers. Their costumes were paid for by a “choregos
>> Write the word on the Board
--a wealthy citizen. He also auditioned them & trained them.
Q. Who remembers what we call
the person today who creates
and teaches the dances in a
musical for both leading
actors and the “chorus” ?
A. Choreographer
Do you see where the word might have come from?
These people might also be called the first “directors”
but they didn’t use that title. The Poet/Actor “directed”
himself, since he performed only “poetic oratory.”
In the early days, they didn’t have all the other people that
make up the collaborative team for our theatres today,
or at least we don’t know about them.
We know nothing about any costume designers,
though probably the poet decided what was appropriate,
or perhaps the Choregos.
They must have had “mask-makers” but they didn’t call
them “prop people.”
As the years went by they developed scenery, but not
complete “sets” as we have today, though they added
“flats” which we still use today. Usually, scenery was
painted on the Skene, and on the flats, which we will
go into more later.
10
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
The people who volunteered for the chorus were given
the title: the “tragic chorus.”
>>The term tragedy comes
from two Greek words:
tragos which means “goat”
and odos which means song.
Write on board.
Q. So how does “tragedy”
translate?
A. goat song.
In Greek theatre, the tragic chorus didn’t describe goats!
Scholars think that the word tragedy was used because
they were first performed in contest and the prize may
have been a goat, a staple food in that part of the world.
Rather, the tragic chorus described the noble actions
of historical person and their deeds, who didn’t often
make good decisions and were punished by the “gods.”
Tragedies told legends of the gods that they believed in
such as Dionysus.
Many of the stories included mythological plots, monsters,
and disasters, much like some of our comics and graphic
novels today. So, a tragedy contains a noble character, a
bad decision and the death of someone at the end.
Q. Have you read a story about
some historical person whose
actions you respect…think
highly of??
(Ask teacher for example prior to class.)
Q. Have you read a story, or
know a story that doesn’t
have a happy ending? If so
you have read a “tragedy.”
11
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
The actors
Reading & writing were not important in the
beginning days of the Greek civilization.
But, an average citizen spent a good deal of his
working week in the public discussion… orating
in the voting assemblies, in the courts, in
committees on business, etc. The Greek citizen was
exposed to some of the finest orators of his time, and
was often called on to speak himself. He had to
learn to debate well. And, therefore, the “audiences”
were very good listeners.
So, just as good voice production and delivery was
the hallmark of a good debater, so it was of the
accomplished actor. They learned that it wasn’t
necessary to shout to be heard and so they had
to learn breath control because they had to use
a lot of energy projecting their voices without
shouting; and they pronounced their words very
clearly and without too much speed because of the
masks they wore. They were trained physically, also,
because that’s how they could develop their strength
and energy.
Acting in masks was hot and heavy work.
And they believed that certain foods were bad for
Their voices…beef for example. They needed a
powerful and finely trained voice; physical stamina
to support the voice, and carry the actor through a
series of roles in mask and heavy costumes.
The gestures themselves were large and were
designed to open the diaphragm.
As Greek Theatre developed, so did the role of
the actor. From the chorus, one member might be
given solo lines to say and the chorus would respond.
He was the Chorus Leader (Korybhaios) The person
generally believed to have been the first poet to
completely step out of the chorus and perform a
Class Activities
12
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
“tragic song” was Thespis, (thus the reason that acting
groups are sometimes referred to as Thespians). His
prize in a major contest was a goat!
Thespis also invented poems for his villagers which he
sang and acted… many of them improvised as he performed.
He is said to have performed solo in order to give the chorus
a rest. So he is thought of as the first “actor.”
(Optional information)
In his first tragedies, he anointed his face with white lead,
then he shaded his face with purslane, and after that
introduced the use of masks, making them from linen
alone. (Teaching artist: you may want to find some to
take to class. It created a dark color on the skin.)
Q. What is purslane?
A. We call it pig weed,
but it can be eaten
as the Greeks did.
So, in addition to the chorus, we now have
1) one man (and always a man—no women),
2) who was a poet,
3)telling a tragic story in verse/poetry and song.
Yes, he had to sing also.
Q. What form of theatre today is
the most similar to this?
A. Opera
Other “actors”/ poets arose and would compete
With each other at important festivals for a prize
…like a goat which Thespis is said to have won
at the Festival for Dionysus in Athens between
536-533 years BCE.
Q. Do we still have “speaking
competitions?
A. Speech classes & contests
So we start with only one actor and a chorus.
But if he needed to be different characters, he
would use masks.
(The students should all have masks of some of
the Greek gods that they made in art class.)
13
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
If they were going to wear masks and still be heard
in a big theatron, they had to:
1) exaggerate the facial features and emotions;
2) cut a large mouth hole to help amplify the voices; and
3) be very clear in their delivery of their poems and verse.
Q. How is this different from
speaking in a small space?
Q. How does an actor have to
change what he does if he
is inside rather than outside?
Little by little, tragedy grew greater and the poets
increased the number of actors needed to communicate
their story/poems. A great playwright called Aeschylus
added a second actor and reduced the role of the chorus.
This change gave us “dialogue” between to characters.
The great philosopher/poet, Sophocles, added a third
actor and introduced painted scenery, also.
But at the height of Greek theatre, there were never more
than three actors and a chorus, though those three actors
could play many characters with the use of masks.
And, as the society changed so did the kinds of theatre they
wanted to see. Plays that had nothing to do with noble
people and their deeds began to be written.
It was eventually called comedy, and was about current
and everyday life.
ACTIVITY:
Readers Theatre: “Athena”
(see attached)
(From “Atalanta to Zeus: Readers Theatre from Greek
Mythology,” by Suzanne I. Barchers)
14
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
>>Have each student say the
line: “Zeus ruled Mother Earth
with great strength and
power.”
Look for projection and clarity.
>>Separate the different tones in
their voices into groups with
high voices and groups with
low voices. These will become
Chorus 1 & 2.
Use the masks they made in
art class, and/or certain
items: Helmet for Athena,
something regal for Zeus,
Metis and Poseidon, a
hammer for Hephaestus
…something simple for
Arachne since she is a
“mortal.”
>>Choose students who
projected best for the
identified characters.
>>Tell a little bit about each
character before they perform.
>>Read the story.
WRAP UP: “ Wiley & the Hairy Man”
>>Tell the students about this
play and how it relates, in a
modern way to Greek theatre.
You will be seeing a contemporary play. It is based on
an African American folk tale. .. a “Trickster tale.”
Q. Who was the trickster in the
readers theatre “Athena”
15
Background Information & Content
for Teaching Artists
Class Activities
Trickster tales are used in many different cultures
to present a character that uses skill and cunning,
not physical strength, to outwit someone bigger and
more dangerous. (Might refer to David & Goliath??)
This particular version of the story uses many of the
same elements as Greek Theatre:
But It takes place in the “swamps” --- like those in the
southern part of the US. It has:
1) A Chorus that moves, talks and, make sounds
though you won’t call it singing. And when
they speak, they speak in verse or “poetry.”
2) Two or Three Characters only are on stage at once,
Q. Were there ever more than 3
not counting the chorus
characters interacting in the
story of Athena we just did?
3) A monster,
Q. Who was the monster?
4) The mother and the Hairy Man “conjure” up spells,
much as the Greek gods did in the stories about them.
Q. Who cast spells in “Athena”
It’s a duel of “wits.”…and it has a happy
ending. So what kind of play is it? Comedy or tragedy?
After you see the play on March 5, we will be back to help
you learn to analyze the play and tell us your view of the
production.
>> Review If Time, Some Of The
Major Terms and Concepts:
1)Types Of Stages In Geece
2) What People In
Collaborative Process
3) How Actor Different
4) Audience: How Similar To
Theatre Today?