Summary Greek theatre - drama and the theatre in ancient Athenian society
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Course
Greek theatre
Institution
OCR
Book
OCR Classical Civilisation AS and A Level Components 21 and 22
Notes on: - role and significance of drama and the theatre in ancient Athenians society - including the religious context of dramatic festivals, the organisation of the city Dionysia - including the makeup and involvement of the theatre audience, structure of the theatre space, and how this develop...
- Drama was performed only at religious festivals
- Key element of Athenian dramatic festival was an element of competition
- Ancient Athenian festivals were intimately associated with the worship of Dionysus
- Festivals were highly organised and grand civic occasions
- Festivals of Dionysus were generally held in the winter months
- Only 4% of plays we known are directly connected to Dionysus
Leaea
- Held in late January
- Comedy was the more important of the plays in the competition
- Only open to Athenians – time of year meant seas were too rough for a journey
Rural Dionysia
- Held in mid-winter
- Local festival celebrated in rural communities of Attica known as demes (village)
City Dionysia
- Appropriate to worship Dionysus (god who encouraged new growth) in spring
- Public business ceased and law courts were closed
- Prisoners were given day-release to watch the plays
- Contained a number of events
- Festivals put on by the people for the people
- Three tragic playwrights each write three tragedies and a satyr-play, five comic playwrights each write
a comedy
- The choregos paid for almost everything
Gave them prestige
- Proagon held a day or two before the festival began, held in the odeion
Plays were announced with a short synopsis
- Wooden statue of Dionysus remained in the theater throughout the performances as a symbol of the
gods presence at his festival;
- Morning of day 1 – grand procession/pompe took place
- Afternoon – dithyrambic competitions in the theatre
Choral dance in honour of Dionysus
- Evening – revel held in the streets by them men of the city
Days 2-5 – the play days
- Day 2 – grand opening ceremony in the theatre of Dionysus
- Day 2 – five comic playwrights presented their play
- Following three days – tragic plays were presented
The spectators
- Poor were probably excluded from the festival in the early years
- Theoric fund – paid for the poorest citizens to attend the theatre if they could not afford the entrance
fee
- Dramatic contestants were open to the full range f citizens
- Front row seats reserved for important officials
- Seating area was divided by section to a;;pw tribes to sit together
- Spectators were loud and opinionated in what they wanted to be
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