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Greek Theater
Western Civilization
The Greek Theater
5th Century B. C.
Golden Age of Greek Drama
Dramatic festivals were popular
People witnessed tragic and comic plays
Overview of Greek TheatreThe landThe myths
The stage
The Land
Greece has thousands of inhabited islands and dramatic mountain ranges
Greece has a rich culture and history
Democracy was founded in Greece
Patriarchal (male dominated) society
Philosophy, as a practice, began in Greece (Socrates, Plato, Aristotle)
The LandLocated in Europe in the Aegean Sea
The Land
Overview of Greek Theatre
The landThe myths
The stage
The Stage
The StageThree Main Portions of Greek Theatre:
Skene – Portion of stage where actors performed (included 1-3 doors in and out)
Orchestra – “Dancing Place” where chorus sang to the audience
Theatron – Seating for audience
The Stage
The StageGreek plays were performed during religious ceremonies held in honor of Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and revelry (altars generally on stage)
Banks would shut down for days, people would travel from all around to see the drama competitions—even prisoners were temporarily released to see the plays
Tragedy means “goat song” (relates to Dionysian rituals)
The Stage
Where and how were the dramas performed?
…In an amphitheatre
…With a chorus who described most of the action.
…With masks
…With all the fighting and movement going on off stage.
….With tragedy first, then comedy later.
Masks of Greek Theater
The masks were worn for many reason including:
1. Visibility2. Acoustic Assistance3. Few Actors, Many Roles4. Characterization
Some general categories of masksSome general categories of masks
1. OLD MEN Smooth-Faced, White, Grizzled, Black-Haired, Flaxen and More Flaxen2. YOUNG MENCommon, Curled, More Curled, Graceful, Horrid, Pale and Less Pale3. SLAVESLeathern, Peaked-Beard, Flat Nose4. WOMENFreed Old Woman, Old Domestic, Middle Aged, Leathern, Pale-Disheveled, Pale Middle Aged, Whorish-Disheveled, Virgin, Girl5. SPECIALIST MASKSSome made for specific characters, others for: Mourning, Blindness, Deceit, Drunkenness...etc. (The comic masks, those especially of old comedy, were as like as possible to true persons they represented, or made to appear more ridiculous)
Masks of Greek Theater
Masks of Greek
Theater
Modern-day replicas
Hero-King
Comedy (Servant or Herald )
Tragedy (Weeping Chorus)
Theater at Epidaurus
Theater at Epidaurus
Major Greek Dramatists
Aeschylus 524 B.C. Seven Against Thebes
Sophocles 496 B.C. Antigone
Oedipus
Euripides 480 B.C. Medea
Dramatist Born Wrote
Sophocles’ AntigoneSet in Thebes (a city in ancient Greece)Antigone is the daughter of Oedipus and JocastaAntigone’s brothers, Eteokles and Polyneces, took opposite sides in a warEteokles and Polyneces killed each other in battleAntigone’s uncle, Kreon, became king of Thebes
Sophocles
Greek Comedy and Aristophanes
Euripides’ MedeaMedea is a princess from ColchisMedea marries Jason, who is in Colchis on a quest for the Golden FleeceMedea betrays her father and murders her brother for her love of JasonMedea has magical powersJason takes Medea back to his homeland, Corinth, where they have childrenJason takes another wife, the king of Corinth’s daughter
Jason’s Voyage on the Argo
Jason and Medea meet
Corinth: Where Jason and Medea settle down
Overview of Greek TheatreThe land
The myths
The stage
Myths played a key rolein Greek drama
The Myths – Why they were written
1. Explained the unexplainable
2. Justified religious practices
3. Gave credibility to leaders
4. Gave hope
5. Polytheistic (more than one god)
6. Centered around the twelve Olympians (primary Greek gods)
Explained the Unexplainable
When Echo tried to get Narcissus to love her, she was denied.
Saddened, she shriveled to nothing, her existence melting into a rock.
Only her voice remained.
Hence, the echo!
To justify religious practices
Dionysian cults in ancient Greece were founded to worship Dionysus, god of grapes, vegetation, and wine.
Roots in Worship of Dionysus
God of wine and revelry
Theater of DionysusDionysia was an annual festival in honor of the god DionysusTheater of Dionysus was an open-air Theater with room for fifteen thousand spectators
Theater of Dionysus
carved out of a stone hillside looked like a semicircle with steeply rising tiers of seats
Theater of Dionysus
Theater of Dionysus
At the bottom was the rounded orchestra or performance area where the chorus sang and danced
Dionysus Theater in Athens
Theater of Dionysus
Behind the orchestra was an open, almost bare, stage where actors spoke their lines from behind huge masks
Dionysus Theater in Athens
Dionysus Theater in Athens
Theater of Dionysus
Male actors performed all the rolesActors switched masks to play a number of roles – both female and male
Dionysus and Satyrs
To give credibility to leaders
Used myths to create family trees for their
leaders, enforcing the made-up idea that the emperors were related to the
gods and were, then, demigods.
To give hope
The ancient citizens of Greece would sacrifice and pray to an ORACLE.
An oracle was a priest or priestess who would send a message to the gods from mortals who brought their requests.
Where DID hope come from?
After unleashing suffering, famine, disease, and many other evils, the last thing Pandora let
out was HOPE.
Oracle of Delphi
Oracle of Delphi
Delphi
Delphi
Mount Olympus……Where the
Olympians lived.
Who are the Olympians?
The Olympians Are the 12 Main Gods
The OlympiansThe Olympians
Zeus
King of gods
Heaven
Storms
Thunder
lightning
Poseidon
Zeus’s brother
King of the sea
Earthquakes
Horses
Hades
Brother to Zeus and Poseidon
King of the Underworld (Tartarus)
Husband of Persphone
AresGod of war
Hephaestus
God of fire
Craftspeople
Metalworkers
Artisans
Apollo
God of the sun
Music
Poetry
Fine arts
Medicine
Hermes
Messenger to the gods
Trade
Commerce
Travelers
Thieves & scoundrels
Dionysus
God of Wine
Partying (Revelry)
Hera
Queen of gods
Women
Marriage
Childbirth
Demeter
Goddess of Harvest
Agriculture
Fertility
Fruitfulness
Mom to Persephone
Hestia
Goddess of Hearth
Home
Community
Athena
Goddess of wisdom
Practical arts
War
Aphrodite
Goddess of love and beauty
Artemis
Goddess of hunting and the moon.
The The StorylineStoryline
Central Character is of the Elite Class
Central Character suffers a Downfall
Central Character is
Neither Wholly good nor
wholly evil
Downfall is the result of a Fatal Flaw
Misfortunes involve
characters who are
related or who are friends
Tragic actions take place offstage
Central Character has a moment of recognition
Audience experiences pity and fear
Pity and Fear leads to a catharsis
The EndThe End