Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Page | 1 Greek Theatre: The Origins of Theatrical Performance Origins of Greek Theatre Greek Theatre started as a part of religious festivals in 532 BC! At the “City Dionysia,” a festival to celebrate the Greek God of revelry, Dionysus, songs were sung by large groups to celebrate the God. Over time, the songs began to tell more and became more elaborate. Eventually, someone decided to break from the group. Page | 2 Thespis- The First Actor The singer Thespis created the idea of drama when he stepped out of the chorus and spoke the words of an individual character. This was the first time a single person performed instead of the whole group, or chorus. Thespis also became the first person to speak the words instead of singing them. Page | 3 Conventions of Greek Theatre No matter how many speaking parts were in a play, each play had three actors and a chorus. Each actor wore a mask to represent his character. If an actor had to play more than one character, he would just change masks. Only men were allowed to act in plays. Any female parts were played by a man in a woman mask. Page | 4 Masks The masks helped identify the different characters and whether the characters were happy (comedy) or sad (tragedy.) Because the audience sat far away, the masks were oversized to allow audience in the back to see the characters. The masks also amplified the sound of the actor’s voice to reach the back of the audience. Page | 5 The Greek Stage The Greek Stage was called the “Theatron.” In many ways it resembled the modern stage, but with some very important differences. Parts of The Greek Stage (Draw this and label it in your notes!) Page | 6 Parts of the Greek Stage Orchestra- The “dancing space” where the actors and chorus performed. Skene- Raised building at the back of the stage. Had doors for entrances and exits and allowed God characters to act from the roof. Theatron- The “viewing place” where the audience sat. Parodos- Paths on the sides of the stage that allowed the audience to enter and exit. Sometimes used by actors as well. Page | 7 Greek Theatre Facts Greek Theatre started in the mid-500s BC. (About 2500 years ago.) Before this time, there is no mention of Drama in literature. Greek plays were presented in competition with other plays at the religious festival. Most of the time, they were performed only once. They were based on famous stories about the Gods or great Greek heroes. Page | 8 Structure of a Greek Play Prologue Parados Episode 1 Choral Ode 1 Episode 2 Choral Ode 2 Episode 3 Choral Ode 3 Etc... Page | 9 Structure of a Greek Play- Vocabulary Prologue- The characters speak to the audience and tell what the play is going to be about. Parados- Chorus chant about what happened before the play began Episode- Characters act out the story Choral Ode- Chorus chant and comment about the story/theme. Page | 10 Late Point of Attack Greek plays begin LATE in the story. The Chorus fills the audience in on what happened before the play began in the Parados. Example: If Finding Nemo were a Greek play it would begin when Nemo was dropped into the Dentist’s fish tank and the Chorus would tell the audience how he got separated from his father. Violence happens OFF stage Even though Greek tragedies were very violent, none of the violence EVER happened onstage. The chorus or actors would report about the tragic violence that happened. Page | 11 The Greek Chorus Plays of Greek theatre always included a chorus Chorus: A group of masked performers who looked alike, and spoke all at the same time. All the chorus wore identical masks, because they represented the same character or group of characters. The masks created a sense of unity and uniformity, a kind of single organism The chorus offered a variety of background and summary information to help the audience follow the performance. Page | 12 The Greek Chorus Continued They commented on themes and demonstrated how the audience might react to the play. In many of these plays, the chorus expressed to the audience what the main characters could not say, such as their hidden fears or secrets. The chorus often provided other characters with the insight they needed. The chorus represents, on stage, the general population or “regular people” of the story.