Theatre of ancient Greece

A theatrical culture flourished in ancient Greece from 700 BC. The city-state of Athens became a very important place for culture, politics, and religion, and theatre became an official part of a special festival named the Dionysia that honoured the god Dionysus. During this time, three main types of plays developed: tragedy, comedy, and the satyr play.

Athens shared this festival with many of its other cities. Today, much of what we know about theatre comes from the theatre of ancient Greece. We use many of the same ideas, names for different kinds of plays, and characters that started there.

Etymology

The word "tragedy" comes from two old Greek words: τράγος, tragos, meaning "goat," and ᾠδή, ode, meaning "song." This shows a connection to the ancient Dionysian cults. We do not know for sure how these fertility rituals grew into the forms of tragedy and comedy.

Origins

Further information: Greek tragedy and Dionysia

The Ancient Greeks loved to tell stories by speaking them aloud, believing that words spoken were more powerful than words written. This love of speaking led to the growth of theatre in Greece.

Around 532 BC in Athens, a man named Thespis became the first known actor. He won a contest and is often called the "Inventor of Tragedy," though his exact role is still debated. Soon after, around 508 BC, Athens began a special festival called the City Dionysia to celebrate their city and honor their god Dionysus. This festival included competitions for tragedies, and early playwrights like Phrynichus told stories that made the audience feel strong emotions.

New inventions during the classical period

After the Achaemenid destruction of Athens in 480 BC, the city and its main area were rebuilt, and theatre became an important part of Athenian culture. This time is often called the Golden Age of Greek drama. The main event of the yearly Dionysia festival, held twice a year, was a contest where three writers of serious plays competed at the Theatre of Dionysus. Each writer presented three serious plays and one funny play called a satyr play, which was a humorous take on a story from myths. Starting in 486 BC, writers also began to present funny plays called comedies. Aristotle said that Aeschylus added a second actor (deuteragonist), and Sophocles added a third (tritagonist). Greek playwrights never used more than three actors in their shows.

Serious plays and funny plays were seen as very different, and they never mixed together. Satyr plays told the same myth stories as the serious plays but in a completely funny way.

Hellenistic period

After Athens lost power following its defeat in the Peloponnesian War against Sparta, the theatre there began to perform old tragedies again. Even though these traditions seemed less lively, Greek theatre kept going into the Hellenistic period (the time after Alexander the Great's conquests in the fourth century BC).

During this time, the main form of theatre was New Comedy, which told funny stories about everyday people. The only playwright we still have from this period is Menander. New Comedy had a big effect on Roman comedy, which we can see in the works of Plautus and Terence.

Architecture

Most ancient Greek cities were built on or near hills, so they used the natural slope to create seating for audiences. This area was called the theatron, meaning "seeing place." In cities without hills, they would pile up dirt to make seating. At the front was a flat, round space called the orchestra (meaning "dancing place"), where a group of 12 to 15 performers, called a chorus, would act out plays with music. Tall, arched pathways called parodoi or eisodoi allowed actors and the chorus to enter and leave the stage.

The word "theatre" eventually came to describe the whole area including the seating, the orchestra, and a backdrop called the skené. The theatron seating started as wooden benches but later used stone blocks for permanent seats. The skené served as a background for performances and a place for actors to change costumes. Over time, it grew into a stone wall with doors and even upper levels. The orchestra was where the chorus and actors performed, and it sometimes had a raised stage for better viewing. The design of these theatres used science to help actors' voices carry clearly to everyone, even in the farthest seats.

Masks

The Ancient Greeks used masks, called prosopon, in their theatres, especially during festivals for the god Dionysus in Athens. These masks were very important in their religious ceremonies and performances. We know about them mostly from old paintings, like the Pronomos vase, which shows actors getting ready for a satyr play. The masks were made from materials like linen, leather, wood, or cork, and they helped actors become different characters.

Masks covered the whole face and head, with holes for the eyes and a small opening for the mouth. They were used by actors to play many different roles, including women and other characters. The masks had exaggerated faces to show emotions clearly to the audience in large outdoor theatres. Actors also wore special shoes: tall boots for serious plays and thin shoes for funny ones. Costumes were colourful and showed a character’s status, with rich fabrics and decorations for important people. Most of what we know about these costumes comes from paintings, since the real clothes and masks were made from materials that did not survive over time.