Links with sacred ritual and with the
social and political system
 All plays were written for the annual
spring festival of Dionysus

Held in large, open-air theatre built into
natural slope of the hill
 Hel 14 – 15,000 spectators on wooden
benches
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Performances took place during daylight
hours
Orchestra – a circular area with an alter
in the center
 Skene – building in back of orchestra
which served as the setting for all plays
 Proskenion – framework in front of the
skene

1st plays were performed her in Athens at
the beginning of the 5th century
 So popular they soon spread throughout
Greece
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According to Greek Mythology, he was
the son of Zeus – only god born of one
god and one mortal parent

He was the god of wine, fertility, and
revelry
Raised by satyrs, killed, dismembered,
and resurrected
 Other gods had temples, the cult of
Dionysus met in the wood
 It was believed he could liberate and
inspire man. It was also believed that he
could endow man with divine creativity.
Therefore, he came to be considered a
patron of the arts.

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Established as a festival in honor of the
god Dionysus.

Featured competitions in music, singing,
dance, and poetry

Most remarkable winner was Thespis.

Of or relating to drama; dramatic:
thespian talents

Thespian: of or relating to Thespis

1. performed for special occasions (Athens
had 4 festivals worshipping Dionysus)

2. competitive – prizes were awarded,
actors and playwrights competed

3. choral – there was singing and dancing,
composed of men (3-50)

4. the stories were based on myth or history
The play
 The actors
 the chorus

Comedy
 Tragedy
 Satyr plays

Late entrance into the festivals
 1st comedies were mainly satirical and
mocked men in power
 Master of comedy - Aristophanes

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Late point of attack
Violence and death offstage
Frequent use of messengers to relate
information
Usually continuous time of action
Usually single place
Stories based on myth or history, but varied
interpretation of events
Focus on psychological and ethical
attributes of characters, rather than
physical and sociological
Dealt with love, loss, pride, the abuse of
power, and fraught relationships
between men and gods
 Typically main character commits terrible
crime without realizing it


3 great playwrights – Aeschylus,
Sophocles, Euripides
Thespis
priest that walked away from the
chorus during a presentation of a story
and, instead of singing, began to recite
words and create extra dialogue
FIRST ACTOR and PLAYWRIGHT

Large Theater: too large to depend on
facial expressions or vocal inflections to
convey characters

Had to rely on physical gestures and their
ability to declaim the poetry of the script

Stylized character masks – could easily
be seen by all audience members – also
help project the voice

3 actors to play all roles, including female ones
– no females on stage, masks helped with this

Chorus included about 15 actors who
represented townspeople and other groups

Chorus remained in the orchestra and sang,
danced in ritualistic/formal patterns and
commented on the action

No stage directions written down

Same as Greek daily wear

Both men and women draped themselves in robes of
finely woven wool or linen – much variety was possible

Variety of colors, elaborate embroidery

Held in place with pins, laces, or belts

Sandals (both men and women) – calf high boots
(soldiers)

Top robe and switch of the mask could completely
change a character in minutes