THE LOVE OF CHRIST WILL ALWAYS REAMAINS OUR HEARTS SOULS AND MINDS

1. Gre
e
kT
he
ate
r

2. Whatw
e
'll discu
ss
BriefHistoryofGreekTheater
DescriptionofGreek Tragedy
&GreekComedy
Outdoortheaters

3. Topic 1- H istory of Gre
e
k The
ate
r
GreekTheaterHistorybeganw
ithfestivalhonoringtheir
gods.Agod,Dionysus,w
ashonored w
ithafestivalcalled
by"CityDionysia".InAthens,duringthisfestival,menused
toperformsongstow
elcomeDionysus,Playsw
ereonly
presentedatCityDionysiafestival.
3M
ainDivisionsofGreekTheater/TheatricalForms:
1.Tragedy
2. Comedy
3. Satire

4. "Dithyramb"- w
hereinGreekTragedy originated. The
dithyrambw
asanancientGreekhymnsunganddancedinhonor
ofDionysus,thegodofw
ineandfertility.Basically,itinvolved
exchangesbetw
eenaleadsingerandthechorus.
M
ostw
ell-know
nGreekTragedyPlayw
rights:
1.Sophocoles
2.Euripides
3.Aeschylus
Topic 1- H istory of Gre
e
k The
ate
r

5. Topic 2 - Gre
e
k Trage
dy & C om
e
dy
EarlyGreektragediesplacedmoreemphasisonthechorus.
Chorus,servestostressthepersonalitiesandsituationsofthecharactersintheplay&
providecommentsontheaction.- (statedintheplaysofAeschylus)
CharactersinGreektragedyareordinaryandthegodsintroduced
moreasplotmanipulators(intheuseofthedeusexmachina,
Medea,431BC)thanrepresentativesoftranscendentpow
er
.
Sophocoles- representstheclassicalbalancebetw
eenthe
humananddivine,therealisticandthesymbolic.
DeusexM
achina,thephraseislooselytranslatedas“
godfromthemachine.”
Manytragedyw
ritersusedDeusexMachinatoresolvecomplicatedoreven
seeminglyhopelesssituationsintheplotsoftheirplays

6. GreekComedyhasabroaddefinition;theywereanysortofaplaythatmade
peoplelaugh.
CharactersofComedy:
1.Obscenity
2.PoliticalSatire
3.Fantasy
4.StrongMoralOvertones
Topic 2 - Greek Tragedy & Comedy

7. Topic 3- Outdoor Theaters
GreekTheatre- theatrebuildingsw
ere
calleda"theatron".
Theyw
erelarge,open-airstructuresconstructedonthe
slopesofhills.Theyconsistedofthesefourm
ain
elem
ents:theorchestra,theatron,skene,andparodos.

8. Topic 3- Outdoor Theaters
1. Orchestra-alargecircularorrectangularareaatthecenterpartofthe
theatre,wheretheplay
,dance,religiousrites,actingusedtotakeplace.In
thecenteroftheorchestrawasathymele,oraltar
.
2.Theatron-placew
herethespectatorssat.
3. Skene-thebuildingdirectlybehindthestage.Ithadatleastoneset
ofdoorswhereactorscouldmakeentrancesandexits.Thesestructures
w
eresom
etim
espaintedtoserveasbackdrops.
4. Parodos(parodoi,whenplural)-pathsbywhichthechorusandsomeactors
madetheirentrancesandexits.Audiencemayalsousedthemtoenterand
exittheaterbeforeandafteraperformance.

9. R eference
Greek-Theatre-Research
ByDanielW
right

10. Thank Youfor
listening!