What Do I Need to Know About Greek Theatre? Who created Greek Theatre?

The tradition is based on worship of the Greek god, Dionysus, who was also responsible for wine and fertility. Thus, theatre was originally practiced at festivals in which Dionysus and other gods were honored, called City Dionysia. What was the purpose of Greek Theatre? Not only was theatre practiced as a ritual to honor the gods, but the Greek people used their plays as a way to heighten the emotions of the audience, which was a vital experience in staying close to the gods. Greeks would seek a sort of emotional cleansing in the sacrifice of a tragic hero, which would help them achieve catharsis by having a healthy way of exercising their emotions. This led to Greek tragedies being very popular. What is the structure of a Greek play? Plays were divided into three parts, beginning with a prologue performed as a simple speech. Next was the entrance of the chorus, which sang and narrated the story. Finally, the acts and plot of the play followed. Besides narrating, what did the chorus do? The chorus would not only tell the story, but occasionally spoke to characters within it, giving advice and serving as an ethical base that the playwright establishes as a comparison to the characters in the show. The chorus also provided a smoothness to the show by accompanying the action with music and dance to heighten moments of tension. What were traditional costumes like? Long, decorated robes called chitons may have been worn along with high boots called cotharnes. Long or short cloaks could be worn over this ensemble. Tragedies had a specific uniform for which they were named, however, as actors originally would wear goatskins (the word tragedy comes from the word for goat). Were masks a part of Greek Theatre? Masks were used to define characters traits and amplify them for the audiences visibility. Generally, they were made of linen or corn, and displayed either a smiling (comedic) face or a droopy, sad (tragedy) face. This is where the famous comedy and tragedy masks that represent theatre as a whole originated from. What were some typical themes of Greek plays? Violence, war, murder, lust, betrayal, and everyday life of the people. What is the dithyramb?

The dithyramb translates directly to choric hymn, and was a specific hymn that was used in worship of Dionysus. After development of ritual into theatre, however, it became an important part of competitive plays. What about Greek playwrights? The playwright Aeschylus has the oldest surviving works, dating back to 449 BCE. His plays often included simple characters and interactions with supernatural forces, as well as themes of justice and guilt. Two other important playwrights of ancient Greece were Sophocles and Euripides, What were ancient play competitions like? In 534 BCE, the once essential Dionysian festival was replaced by Pisistratus (the ruler of Athens) with a play competition. Wealthy patrons would fund such festivals and, together with the government officials, would chose the competing playwrights. Prizes were rewarded to the winners.