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Greek Theater
The origins of drama
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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.
Word Origin
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The modern word “drama”
comes from the Greek
word dran meaning "to do
or act"
Definition
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Dithyrambs: a poem,
chant, or hymn of
ancient Greece sung by
revelers at the festival in
honor of the god
Dionysus
Greek Theater

Greek tragedies and comedies were always performed
in outdoor theaters.
 Early Greek theaters 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 theater structures, but the basic layout
of the Greek theater remained the same
Parts of the Theater
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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.
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Theatron: (literally, "viewing-place") This is where
the spectators sat. The theatron was usually part of
hillside overlooking the orchestra.
Parts cont.
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Skene: (literally, "tent") The skene was the stage and
backdrop 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.
Theatre
of
Dionysus
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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.
Word Origin
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The modern word
“theater” comes
from the Greek word
theatron meaning
"seeing place"
Why Dionysus?
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In Greek Mythology
Dionysus was the son of
Zeus. He is the only
Olympian god born of one
god and one mortal parent
(Trivia: who was his
mother?).
He was the god of wine,
fertility and revelry.
Dionysis cont.
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He was raised by satyrs, killed, dismembered, and
resurrected (was actually reborn).
Other gods had temples, the cult of Dionysis met
in the woods.
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
The “City Dionysia”

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,
who won in 534 BCE and who is now
considered to be the founder of modern Greek
tragedy
Word origin
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
Four Qualities of Greek Drama:
1. Performed for special occasions (festivals).
Athens had four festivals worshipping Dionysus.
2. Competitive--prizes were awarded. Actors and playwrights
competed (Sophocles won 2nd place for Oedipus)
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
Essential pieces of Greek drama

The play
 The actors
 The chorus
The Play: Types of Greek Drama
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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 symbolize theater.
Comedy
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
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Word Origin

The word tragedy came
to be derived from the
Greek tragos (goat)
and ode (poem).
Tragedy literally means
goat song or goat poem.
The Greek tragedy
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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.
Tragedy cont.

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.
The Structure of Greek Tragedy
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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.
Tragic flaw

a flaw or mistake that brings about the downfall of
the hero of a tragedy
 The Greek term "hamartia," 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.
Satyr Plays
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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 halfhuman, half-goat servants of
Dionysus.
Word Origin

Does the term Satyr
remind you of any
modern day term?
The Satyr and the Satyr
plays spawned the
modern word satire.
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The Actors
The word for actor is
“hypokrit” in Greek
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
The Chorus
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.
Sophocles
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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.
Sophocles cont.
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won 24 contests, never lower than 2nd
Oedipus Tyrannus was performed in 430 or 429 BCE and
earned 2nd place
Sophocles added a third actor and scenery to performances
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
Characteristics of Sophocles' plays:
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complex characters, psychologically well-motivated
emphasis on individual characters
characters subjected to crisis leading to suffering and
self recognition - including a higher law above man
exposition carefully motivated
scenes suspense fully climactic
action clear and logical
poetry clear and beautiful
few elaborate visual effects
theme emphasized: the choices of people
We will be looking at:
Oedipus:
 The story of Oedipus was well known legend to Sophocles’
audience.
 Aristotle used this play and its plot as the supreme example of
tragedy
 Sigmund Freud famously based his theory of the “Oedipal
Complex” on this story
Antigone:
 Antigone was probably the first of the three Theban plays that
Sophocles wrote, although the events dramatized in it happen
last.
 Antigone is one of the first heroines in literature, a woman who
fights against a male power structure, exhibiting greater bravery
than any of the men who scorn her.
The Final Curtain
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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.
 Theater continued, but it would not return to the same
creative heights until Elizabethan England two
millenia later.
Additional Terms
Deus ex machina in Latin (also “theos ek
mēkhanēs” in Greek) means “god from the
machine.” In Greek theater actors
representing gods were suspended above the
stage by ropes, the resolution (i.e. denouement)
of the play being brought about by the
intervention of these gods.
 catharsis: emotional relief or purification of pity
and fear that characters and the audience were
supposed to experience upon watching a Greek
tragedy (Aristotle’s Poetics)
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More Additional Terms
hamartia: the fatal flaw (aka tragic flaw) that
leads to the downfall of a Greek hero or heroine
 hubris: Excessive pride on the part of a
character; a common form of hamartia
 stichomythia: the dialogue pattern in Greek
drama. Actors begin scenes with long speeches
to state positions. As conflict increases and
tension builds, the speeches become shorter
 peripeteia: a sudden change of fortune of a
character (e.g. Creon’s misfortune in Antigone)
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