Greek theatre originated from hymns sung in honor of Dionysus. The earliest theatres were simple outdoor spaces where actors and chorus performed plays. Over time, theatres evolved with designated spaces for the orchestra, stage, and audience seating. The ancient Greeks performed tragedies and comedies as part of religious festivals. Tragedies focused on human suffering, while comedies parodied society. Playwrights like Sophocles and Aristophanes helped establish the genres. Greek theatre laid the foundations for modern Western theatre.

1. GREEK THEATRE

2. The modern
word “drama”
comes form the
Greek word dran
meaning "to do"

3.  The earliest origins of
drama are ancient hymns,
called dithyrambs. These
were sung in honor of the
god Dionysus. These
hymns were later adapted
for choral processions in
which participants would
dress up in costumes and
masks.

4. Dithyrambs:
 a poem, chant, or hymn
of ancient Greece sung
by revelers at the festival
in honor of the god
Dionysus

5.  Greek tragedies and comedies were always performed
in outdoor theatres.
 Early Greek theatres were probably little more than
open areas in city centers or next to hillsides where the
audience, standing or sitting, could watch and listen to
the chorus singing about the exploits of a god or hero.
 From the late 6th century BC to the 4th and 3rd
centuries BC there was a gradual evolution towards
more elaborate theatre structures, but the basic layout
of the Greek theatre remained the same

6. Orchestra: (literally, "dancing space") A circular and level
space where the chorus would dance, sing, and interact with
the actors who were on the stage near the skene.
 Theatron:
(literally, "viewing-place")
This is where the spectators sat.
The theatron was usually part
of hillside overlooking the
orchestra.

7. The modern
word “theatre”
comes from the
Greek word
theatron
meaning
"seeing place"

9. Skene: (literally, "tent") 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.
Parodos: (literally, "passageways") The paths by
which the chorus and some actors made their
entrances and exits. The audience also used them to
enter and exit the theater before and after the
performance.

10.  The first plays were performed in the Theatre of
Dionysus, built in the shadow of the Acropolis in
Athens at the beginning of the 5th century,
 These theatres proved to be so popular they soon
spread all over Greece.

11. In Greek Mythology
Dionysus was the son of
Zeus. He is the only god
born of one god and one
mortal parent.
He was the god of wine,
fertility and revelry.

12. He was raised by satyrs, killed, dismembered,
and resurrected (was actually reborn).
Other gods had temples, the cult of Dionysis
met in the wood.
 It was believed that he could liberate and inspire
man. It was also believed that he could endow
man with divine creativity. Dionysus, thus,
came to be considered a patron of the arts

13. In the sixth century BC, the Athenian ruler,
Pisistratus, established the 'City Dionysia', a
festival of entertainment held in honor of the
god Dionysus.
This festival featured competitions in music,
singing, dance and poetry.
The most remarkable of all the winners was
said to be a wandering bard named Thespis.

14. Does the name Thespis remind you of anything? Can
you guess which modern word goes back to this early
actor’s name?
thespian:
1. Of or relating to drama;
dramatic: thespian talents. 2.
Thespian Of or relating to
Thespis

15. 1. Performed for special occasions (festivals).
Athens had four festivals worshipping Dionysus.
2. Competitive--prizes were awarded. Actors and
playwrights competed (Oedipus won 2nd place)
3. Choral – There was singing; the chorus was made up of
men (from 3 to 50). The chorus sang, moved, and danced.
They moved the story along.
4. The stories were based on myth or history

16.  The play
The actors
The chorus

17. Comedy
Tragedy
 Satyr Plays
Comedy and tragedy were the most popular types of
plays in ancient Greece. Hence, the modern popularity
of the comedy and tragedy masks to symbolise theatre.

18.  not admitted to Dionysus festival till 487-486 B.C.
– late
 The first comedies were mainly satirical and
mocked men in power for their vanity and
foolishness.
 The first master of comedy was the playwright
Aristophanes.
 exaggerated, farcical, sensual pleasures

19. Prologue — leading character
conceives a "happy idea"
Parados: entrance of the chorus
Agon: dramatized debate between
proponent and opponent of the "happy
idea"

20. Parabasis: chorus
addresses audience on
poet’s views on topic
 Episodes: "Happy idea"
is put to practical
application

21. 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
interpretations of events
Focus is on psychological and ethical attributes of
characters, rather than physical and sociological.

22. Tragedy dealt with love, loss, pride, the abuse of
power and the fraught relationships between men
and gods.
Typically the main protagonist of a tragedy
commits some terrible crime without realizing how
foolish and arrogant he has been. Then, as he
slowly realizes his error, the world crumbles around
him.
 The three great playwrights of tragedy were
Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides.

23.  The word tragedy came
to be derived from the
Greek tragos (goat) and
ode (poem). Tragedy
literally means goat song
or goat poem.

24.  Prologue, which described the situation and set the scene
 Parados, an ode sung by the chorus as it made its entrance
 Five dramatic scenes, each followed by a Komos, an
exchange of laments by the chorus and the protagonist
 Exodus, the climax and conclusion
 Tragedies were often presented in trilogies. Interspersed
between the three plays in the trilogy were satyr plays, in
which satyrs (men dressed as half-goats) made fun of the
characters in the surrounding tragedies.

25. a flaw or mistake that brings about the downfall of
the hero of a tragedy
The Greek term "harmartia," typically translated as
"tragic flaw," actually is closer in meaning to a
"mistake" or an "error," "failing," rather than an
innate flaw.
The character's flaw must result from something that
is also a central part of their virtue, which goes
somewhat arwry, usually due to a lack of knowledge.

26.  These were short plays
performed between the acts of
tragedies. They made fun of
the plight of the tragedy's
characters.
 The satyrs were mythical half-human,
half-goat servants of
Dionysus.

27.  Does the term Satyr
remind you of any
modern day term?
The Satyr and the Satyr
plays spawned the
modern word satire.

28.  All of the actors and
playwrights were men.
Women were not allowed to
participate.
 The actors played multiple
roles, so a mask was used to
show the change in character
or mood.
 Gestures and body movements
were controlled and stately
 If playing female role — need
for female appearance — wore
the prosternida before the
chest and the progastrida
before the belly

29. Functions of the chorus
 an agent: gives advice, asks, takes part
 establishes ethical framework, sets up standard by
which action will be judged
 ideal spectator - reacts as playwright hopes audience
would
 sets mood and heightens dramatic effects
 adds movement, spectacle, song, and dance
 rhythmical function - pauses / paces the action so that
the audience can reflect.

30.  Sophocles: (496-406 B.C.) The son of
a wealthy merchant, he would
enjoy all the comforts of a thriving
Greek empire.
 By the age of sixteen, he was
chosen to lead a choir of boys at a
celebration of the victory of
Salamis.
 By age 28 his studies complete,
and he was ready to compete in
the City Dionysia--a festival held
every year at the Theatre of
Dionysus in which new plays were
presented.

31. won 24 contests, never lower than 2nd
 Added a third actor and scenery
 Concerned with the relationship between gods and human
fate
 Concerned with tragic irony, the contrast between human fate
and human ignorance
 Concerned with the importance of free will/moral choice
 Struggle even if struggle is hopeless; each character
embodies a certain moral ideal
Portrays humans as they OUGHT to be
Believed evil/moral failings stemmed from ignorance

32.  By the time of Sophocles' death in
406 BC (128 years after Thespis'
victory in the first Athenian drama
competition) the golden era of Greek
drama was ending.
 Athens, whose free-thinking culture
had spawned the birth of theater,
would be overrun in 404 BC by the
Spartans, and would later be torn
apart by constant warring with other
city states, eventually falling under
the dominion of Alexander the Great
and his Macedonian armies.

33. TASK
In pairs, come up with a concept for a 5
minute tragedy, comedy or satyr play
that contains elements of theatre
explored in this presentation.
Plan the plot and characters (make sure
it’s not too complicated) then begin
writing the play!