Theatre and Drama in Ancient Greece Historical Background

Theatre and Drama in Ancient Greece (Historical Background) • EARLY AEGEAN CIVILIZATIONS AFFECTED THEATRE THROUGH THE INFLUENCE OF THEIR GODS, HEROES, AND HISTORIES • THESE WERE THE SOURCE MATERIAL FOR HOMER’S ILIAD AND ODYSSEY, WHICH WERE IN TURN THE BASIS FOR GREEK DRAMA. • THUS, THESE CIVILIZATIONS PROVIDED THE FOUNDATION FOR WESTERN LITERATURE. • THE GREEK CIVILIZATION THAT DEVELOPED THEATRE TOOK SHAPE BETWEEN THE 8 TH AND 6 TH CENTURIES B. C. E. • THE MOST IMPORTANT CITY-STATES WERE ATTICA (ATHENS), SPARTA, CORINTH, THEBES, MEGARA, 1 A map of ancient Greece. Image: https: //upload. wikimedia. org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/ Ancient_Regions_Mainland_Greece. png/280 px-Ancient_Regions_Mainland_Greece. png

Theatre and Drama in Ancient Greece (Historical Background) • TYRANTS CAME INTO POWER IN MANY CITYSTATES BETWEEN 650 AND 500 B. C. E. • MANY OF THEM ACTUALLY IMPROVED SOCIAL CONDITIONS AND PROMOTED THE ARTS • THE MOST IMPORTANT WAS PEISISTRATUS • HE MADE ATHENS THE LEADING CENTER OF THE ARTS • HE ESTABLISHED OR ENLARGED SEVERAL FESTIVALS INCLUDING THE CITY DIONYSIA (THE MAJOR HOME OF DRAMA) • EVENTUALLY TYRANTS WERE OVERTHROWN, AND ATHENS FOUNDED THE WORLD’S FIRST DEMOCRACY AROUND 508 B. C. E. 2 Possibly a carved bust of Peisistratus. Image: http: //alchetron. com/Peisistratos-1045073 -W

Theatre and Drama in Ancient Greece (Historical Background) • ATHENIAN CONFIDENCE IN THEIR STRENGTH AND WORTH GREATLY MOTIVATED THEIR ARTISTIC EXPRESSION. • EQUALLY IMPORTANT WAS THE GREEK VIEW OF HUMAN BEINGS AND THE GODS • GREEK THOUGHT IS CHARACTERIZED BY A TENSION BETWEEN: • HUMAN RATIONALITY • ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF UNPREDICTABILITY • GREEK FAITH IN HUMANITY WAS GREAT, BUT THEY WERE NOT CONSISTENT 3 • THEY ENSLAVED OTHERS • THEY SEVERELY RESTRICTED THE ROLE OF This sculpture shows a variety of Greek gods Image: http: //eu. greekreporter. com/files/greek-pantheon-of-the-gods. jpg

Theatre and Drama in Ancient Greece (The Origin of Tragedy) • IN ONE ACCOUNT, THE INVENTION OF TRAGEDY IS CREDITED TO THESPIS IN 534 B. C. E. • IT IS SAID HE WON A COMPETITION IN ATHENS AS PART OF THE CITY DIONYSIA FESTIVAL • THIS CONFUSION IS PROBABLY DUE IN PART TO THE IMPRECISE MEANING OF THE WORD TRAGOIDIA (“GOAT SONG”) FROM WHICH WE GET THE WORD TRAGEDY. • LATER ROMAN AUTHORS SAY THESPIS EXPERIMENTED WITH DIFFERENT TYPES OF MASKS. • THE GREAT INNOVATION ATTRIBUTED TO THESPIS IS THE CREATION OF “DIALOGUE” • ASSUMED TO BE AN EXCHANGE OF WORDS BETWEEN HIM AND THE LEADER OF THE CHORUS. • THIS MADE HIM THE FIRST ACTOR/DRAMATIST 4 • GREEKS CALLED HIM HYPOKRITES, MEANING “INTERPRETER” OR “ANSWERER” A statue honoring Thespis, the first actor. Image: https: //www. tes. com/lessons/j. R 4 Ez. Je. AOazspg/greek-and-roman

Theatre and Drama in Ancient Greece (The Origin of Tragedy) • THE EARLIEST STILL-EXISTING ACCOUNT OF HOW GREEK DRAMA ORIGINATED COMES FROM ARISTOTLE’S POETICS. • IT STATES THAT DRAMA EMERGED FROM IMPROVISATIONS BY LEADERS OF DITHYRAMBS (HYMNS SUNG AND DANCED TO DIONYSUS, GREEK GOD OF WINE AND FERTILITY). • ALTERNATE THEORIES ARGUE THAT DRAMA EMERGED FROM EXPERIMENTATION WITH PERFORMANCE FORMS LIKE RECITED STORIES, SUNG POETRY, AND NARRATIVE DANCE • REGARDLESS, A MAJOR STEP WAS TAKEN WHEN THE FIRST ACTOR/DRAMATIST APPEARED IN THE 6 TH CENTURY B. C. E. • THE SECOND MAJOR STEP OCCURRED EARLY IN THE 5 TH CENTURY B. C. E. WHEN AESCHYLUS ADDED A SECOND ACTOR 5 As soon as one actor stepped out from the chorus, drama as we now know it was born! Image: http: //quoteaddicts. com/topic/greek-chorus-quote/