Drama & Theatre Unit 3 - Theatre History

Unit 3 - Theatre History 3.1 Ancient Greek Theatre Characteristics of Ancient Greek Theatre ● This time period was from around 400 to 500 B.C. ● Athens was the epicentre of theatre in Greece ● Plays were important social and political gatherings. They were performed once or twice a year. They were always performed for a purpose, not just for entertainment. ● Plays were almost always put on during the festival honouring the Greek god, Dionysius. The Greeks put on these plays in hopes of impressing the god so he would bless them with wealth, land, food, and children. ● Aristotle, the Greek philosopher, wrote the book The Poetics, which went into detail about Ancient Greek Theatre. He also discussed concepts like plot, theme, character, etc. in his book. ● Plays often included contests for best actor or comedian. The first of these contests is thought to have happened in 534 B.C. ○ The winner of this contest was named Thespis, which is where the word thespian comes from. ○ Thespian is used to refer to actors today. ● The most famous of Greek plays is the play by Sophocles called Oedipus the King and Lysistrata by Aristophanes. Masks and the Greek Chorus ● Greek actors wore masks which made it easier for them to change between characters. ● The first Greek actors were all male, so if they wanted to portray women, it made their act more believable. ● Young men would make up the chorus, which was a group of actors who would sing and dance during the plays. ● Thespis was the first person to ever step out from the chorus and recite solo lines, which technically made him the first actor ever. 3.1 Ancient Greek Theatre (continued) Greek Mythology ● Greeks strongly believed in the existence of multiple gods, each which had the power to give them access to different things in life. ● These gods included… ○ Dionysus: god of wine ○ Posiedon: god of the sea ○ Hera: god of marriage and family ○ Ares: god of war and battle ○ Athena: god of wisdom ● Greek mythology is the legends and stories behind these gods. ● Many plays at this time were based on these myths, and these gods were often big characters in their plays. Greek Amphitheatre ● Before drama and theatre really took off in Ancient Greece, plays were often performed in public areas outdoors with no distinction between the audience and the stage. ● Towards the 3rd and 4th centuries B.C., the Greeks began to build elaborate theatre structures. They increased in size and became more and more grand, but the original structure of the Greek amphitheatre remained the same. Diagram of the structure and layout of a Greek amphitheatre. 3.1 Ancient Greek Theatre (continued) ● Orchestra: ○ Also known as the dancing and singing area ○ About 60 feet in diameter because the chorus was usually very large ○ Housed the chorus members ○ In the centre of the orchestra, there was an altar called a thymele ● Theatron: ○ Also known as the “viewing area” ○ Where the audience and spectators sat and watched the play ○ Overlooked and wrapped around the orchestra ○ Stone/marble seats were originally used but then changed to cushion seats for more comfortability ● Skene: ○ Skene = tent ○ The area directly behind the stage and orchestra ○ The skene had access to the roof of the ampitheatre, so actors who were playing god characters could appear at the top for more dramatic effect ○ Skene was usually decorated to look like a temple or palace, depending on the play that was being performed ○ About 25 feet wide and 10 feet in depth ● Parados: ○ Parados = passageways ○ The pathways the chorus and actors would use to enter and exit the orchestra and stage ○ The audience would use these passageways to get to their seats or leave the theatre 3.1 Ancient Greek Theatre (continued) ● Overall, the Greek amphitheatre was very large because many people would come to see these plays that would only be out on every once in a while ● These theatres could fit up to 30,000 spectators at a time, and were about 400ft long and 200 ft wide, ● Much of the amphitheatre was just audience seats, and the audience seats usually took up more space than the orchestra, parados, and the skene. Important Figures in Ancient Greek Theatre ● Menander (342 BC - 291 BC) ○ Greek dramatist ○ The face of Athenian comedy drama ○ In his lifetime, he wrote more than 100 comedies ● Choerilus (546 BC - 460 BC) ○ Athenian tragedy poet ○ Started writing plays (mostly tragedies) at about 20 years of age, and by the end of his career, he had put on more than 150 plays, ○ All of his plays have been lost through time except for one called Alope. ● Sophocles (496 BC - 406, Athens) ○ An important greek tragedian because he is one of the few whose works have survived over time ○ Wrote the famous plays about Oedipus ● Euripides (484 BC - 406, Macedonia) ○ Greek tragedian ○ Along with Sophocles, his work was one of the few that are still here today ○ Scholars estimate that he was the author of more than 90 plays ● Agathon (448 BC - 400 BC) ○ Athenian tragedy poet/playwright ○ A prominent character in many comedies and tragedies written by other poets and playwrights 3.1 Ancient Greek Theatre (continued) ● Aristophanes (460 c - 380 BCE) ○ Athenian comic playwright (comedy dramas) ○ The greatest representative of comedy plays in Ancient Greek times ○ Famous for his rhythmic poetry he used in all of his works ● Aeschylus (525 BC - 456 BC) ○ Greek tragedian ○ Famously known as the “father of tragedy” ○ Majority of understating of tragedies written in Ancient Greek comes from his writings and work, as well as inferences drawn from his surviving plays 3.2 Roman Theatre ● In 146 B.C., Rome had completely conquered Ancient Greece ● They gradually took Greek dramas, plays, and theatre culture and adapted it into their own ● The roman empire was vast, and many people were rich ● Rich = more free time, so the Romans turned to plays to entertain themselves ● They enjoyed Greek theatre, short comedies which are comparable to today’s sitcoms, music festivals, dance contests, chariot races and more. ● Unlike Ancient Greek, comedies were more popular among the Romans than tragedies. Roman Plays ● Not many Roman tragedy plays have survived over time, but of the number we do have, all of them but one are by the playwright Seneca. ○ Seneca (5 B.C. - 65 B.C.) ■ Nine of his plays have survived to this day ■ Some of these titles include Agamemnon, The Trojan Women, and Medea. ● Comedy plays that we still have today are all by Titus Plautus or Publius Terentius. ● Many of these surviving plays are not original Roman plots or ideas and are based on the storylines of pre existing Greek plays. Changes ● The Romans made some significant changes to the Greeks’ style of theatre ● They got rid of the chorus and instead added music (singers and instrument players) that went along with the dialogue (similar to soundtracks in movies) ● The Greeks also had a smaller cast and crew and limited the number of people who could act in a play. The Romans liked to put on larger productions and did not limit the amount of actors in each play. 3.2 Roman Theatre (continued) Roman Theatre Structures Roman theatre diagram (colosseums). ● Semi circle shape, made from concrete and very large ● Scaenae frons: ○ Back wall of the stage ○ Higher than the rest of the stage ○ Large columns supported it ● Podium: ○ Concrete beneath the columns of the scaenae frons ○ Ornately decorated to match the rest of the theatre ● Cavea and orchestra: ○ Seating section for the audience ○ Usually sloped upwards away from the main stage (inspiration from Greek theatres) ○ Orchestra was the area where the main stage was 3.2 Roman Theatre (continued) ● Vomitoria: ○ Passageways for people in the audience to move around and exit and enter the theatre ○ Also used by actors for grand entrances ● Most influential people in Ancient Rome theatre: ○ Plautus (254 BC - 184 BC) ■ Roman playwright ■ His comedies are some of the earliest literary works from Ancient Rome to have survived ■ Author of many influential books and plays at the time ○ Terence (185 B.C. - ca. 159 B.C.) ■ African and Roman playwright ■ Comedies were performed worldwide, not just in Rome ■ He was wildly popular at the time and influenced other playwrights with his work 3.3 Medieval Theatre (Theatre of the Middle Ages) Characteristics of Medieval Theatre ● Time period - approximately 500-1500 A.D ● During this time period, the church had a lot of power, so they used theatre as a way to communicate religion and piety to the public. ● Plays during the Medieval period were based on stories from the Bible. ● Multiple plays would be performed at one time, called a cycle of plays. ● The genre of plays at this time was mystery plays. They were called this because the theme of these plays focused on the mysterious nature of god. ● As this time period went on, the church began to change the style of plays that were put on. ● Newer plays came to the scene called morality plays. ○ Morality plays were used to teach a lesson to the audience through the characters and their actions throughout the play. Structure of Medieval Plays ● Staged in churches or the area outside of the church (for outdoor plays) ● Mansions: small houses decorated to represent different locations during the play. One play often used multiple ‘mansions’ to symbolize that the location had changed. ● Platea: shared central acting area Medieval theatre where ‘mansions’ were used to symbolize a different location in the play. 3.4 Italian Renaissance Theatre ● Time period: late 1300’s to the early 1600’s, mostly based around Italy, because it was the cultural centre of Europe at the time ● Renaissance theatre was a part of a huge advancement in culture, arts, and entertainment known as the Renaissance period. ● During this time, plays were put on for the sole purpose of entertainment, and there was an emphasis on plays for families and children. ● Patronage: merchants sponsoring playwrights to create plays and other forms of art for the purpose of entertaining their friends and family. Neoclassical Ideals ● The main theme of plays was humanism. ● Humanism: prime importance on humans and life ● Neoclassical ideals were the new rules for writing dramas, and based on rediscovering the plays and works of playwrights from Greek and Roman eras. ● They wanted to represent ‘real life’ in all their plays, so this is where the theme of humanism came from. 3.4 Italian Renaissance Theatre (continued) Architecture and Structure of the Renaissance Theatre ● The architects that designed Renaissance theatres were arguably the most important people of this time period. ● In the 1600’s, the proscenium arch became common for most large theatres. ● The proscenium arch and the facade (fake building at the front of the stage) were the most prominent parts of this design. ● Plays used painted scenery which took months to build and paint by hand. ● Unlike the medieval era, this type of theatre only used one kind of scenery at a time. Classic proscenium arch of the Renaissance period. 3.5 Elizabethan Theatre ● Time period named after Queen Elizabeth, who was ruler of Great Britain from 15581608. ● During her reign, language and literature was becoming more and more popular and it was flourishing throughout Britain. ● Acting became considered a professional career, allowing theatre to thrive. Because of this, more theatres were being built, and more people were coming to watch actors perform. ● The Globe Theatre is a famous theatre of this period, because it is where Shakespeare performed many of his plays. ● Use of poetry was very popular in plays. ● Plays written in Britain vastly differed from the plays being produced in Italy and the rest of Europe. ● Plays were structured into brief scenes, where the location would frequently change and allow new characters to switch in and play their roles. ● Stages were very simple with not a lot of dramatics and scenery and props. The audience would know the scene was changing when one group of actors would switch with the next. It was a very simple but captivating style of theatre. William Shakespeare (1564-1616) ● The most influential playwright of the Elizabethan era. ● English playwright, actor, and a very talented poet. ● One of the world’s greatest dramatists, and his works are still used today. ● Often referred to as “England’s national poet”.