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Compare and contrast comedy and tragedy
The nature of Greek theatre
The nature of Greek theatre
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Recommended: Compare and contrast comedy and tragedy
The Greek Chorus
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Greek tragedy and comedy originated with the chorus, the most important part of the performance space was the orchestra, which means 'a place for dancing' (orchesis). A typical tragic Greek chorus was a group of some twelve to fifteen masked men just about to enter military service after some years of training (Athenians were taught to sing and dance from a very early age.) An old comedic chorus consisted of up to twenty four men. The effort of dancing and singing through three tragedies and a satyr play was likened to that of competing in the Olympic Games. Like in Elizabethan theatre, the men portrayed women. They made the transitions between scenes, giving actors the chance to enter and leave the playing area, and announced what characters those actors portrayed. But the function of the chorus goes beyond this. The choral odes, accompanied by dancing and music, were part of the entertainment itself. The chorus both commented on the events and participated in them, so that it was both involved in the action and detached from it. There was a choral leader who led the group, and as theatre developed, who conversed with the actor or actors.
In the mid-fifth century, after rebuilding the ruins of the Acropolis, Pericles built a recital-hall or odeion to the east of the Acropolis. This building was roughly square in shape with a roof described as pyramidal or conical. The Odeion of Pericles was used for many purposes, one being the proagon, a ceremony in which the dramatic poets announced the titles of their plays and introduced their actors. Members of the chorus would wait in the Odeion to make their entrance.
The fifth-century skene was not a permanent building, but a temporary construction of wood, placed across the rear of the orchestral circle for the dramatic performances at each year's festival. Nevertheless its invention brought about a massive change in theatrical practice and in the semiotics of space. The interior of this flat-roofed building was the 'backstage' area, but in visual terms it was not so much 'behind' as 'within', an enclosed space which, like a real house, was the dominion of female characters. As a rule, actors could and did step out of the skene and join the chorus in the orchestra, but the chorus did not enter the skene.
The Peristyle, one of the buildings that was constructed for the Fair, was designed by Charles B. Atwood. It was an ‘arcade of columns originally proposed by Augustus Saint Gaudens, the consultant on sculpture.” (Burg 79) The Perisytle was a beautiful building that followed in the traditional Greek pathway. It “was a series of forty-eight Corinthian columns, one for each of the American States and Territories, with an immense triumphal arch at the center. J The Peristyle itself was 500’ high, its top being a broad promenade populated by 85 allegorical figures in heroic scale.” (Burg 119) The Greeks used Peristyles in their architecture. A Peristyle was placed around the Greek Parthenon. Corinthian columns were created in the Hellenic era, but they had to wait until the Hellenistic era to reach their full development. J “They are distinguished by their ornate capitals with double rows of acanthus leaves and fernlike fonds rising from each corner and terminating in miniature volutes.” (Fleming 32)
The circular area in the middle of the theatre is called the orchestra. The music of the orchestra. In ancient Greek times this area would have been used for dancing and where the ‘chorus’ would sing and perform. A ‘chorus’ was. a group of people who would play a major part in ancient plays often describing scenes much like a modern narrator.
Imagine that you are in Athens during the fifth century. Today is the festival called City Dionysia, and you are currently seeing a dithyramb, which is a choral song dedicated to Dionysus, the god of fertility and wine. It is sung by 50 men dressed up in goat skins as satyrs. However, you have seen the same ritual a number of times and start to lose interest in the festival. Then, you hear about a fellow Athenian named Thespis, who has a different way to present this ritual. Ladies and gentlemen, you are about to embark on a journey to visit the beginnings of Greek theater. As I have mentioned before, the origins lie in the goat song known as tragoidia. In 534 BC, Thespis was the first actor, added narration, and acted out dramatic episodes.
came about because of the “problematic relationship that Greeks believed existed between gods and humans” (Perseus Digital Library). Greek theater, however, is different from our business enterprise theater. The Athenian theater was financed by the Athenian state. It was an essential part of the Athenian religious festival: the City Dionysia (AbleMedia LLC). During this festival, three tragic playwrights were chosen to present a tetralogy. A tetralogy is a group of four dramas: three tragedies and one satyr play that are performed consecutively (Dictionary.com). The three tragic poets competed with one another while their efforts were ranked by a panel of judges (AbleMedia LLC). This fundamental part of Greek culture brought ...
The late 5th, early 4th centuries, in Athens were an eventful and emotional time for civilians. Between wars and the political debates of the time, civilians were fearful and anxious over the uncertainty of their government. To their advantage, they had games and other forms of entertainment, such as western theater to distract them from the outside world. Aristophanes was one of many playwrights to write comedy and satire plays, specifically Clouds and Women at the Thesmophoria are said to be the best explanation of Aristophanes concerns on contemporary Athens.
My experience at the baylor "Siren's Song" A Cappella Choir concert was definitely an interesting one. I had very mixed feeling about the concert. During this concert, I experienced had a range of emotions from boredom to real interest and respect. In total, the choir sang 9 songs and each one was different than the last. Only about four of the songs were in english, and the others were in german, spanish, and hebrew. Unfortunately, probably due to my untrained ear, I had to strain to really understand the songs that were in english, let alone German. Although every once in awhile I would hear words such as “Blumen”.
In ancient Greek plays, the role of the chorus was to sing lyrical passages. The lyrical passages were set up
The spring choir concert that I went to was like the percussion concert just with singing. I enjoyed listening to the singers as they sung the different melodies. As I was sitting there listening to the different singers sing I could not help but to think about how strong there voices are and how strong they must be to get over the big space of the performance center. Voice is just lost in such a big space like the one in the Price performance center, they have to work on their voices and make sure that they can sing loud, clear and strong to get it across to the audience. Also, while trying to do that they must make sure that the quality is not lost while trying to increase the loudness of their voice. I could also tell the different voices such as the tenors the sopranos and the altos. I could not help but to realize how these different voices interacted with each other and how without one set the sound would not be the same and would be lost. I don’t understand how some people can sing as high as they do, such as the alto section. They must have some hard exercising for their voice to get as high as it does and to sound just as good.
In the earlier times of Ancient Greece, they had the theaters next to hills and people would stand or sit, and in the later times, the theaters were more popular, which means more elaborate structures.
Song, or melody, is fifth, and is the musical element of the chorus. Aristotle argues that the Chorus should be fully integrated into the play like an actor; choral odes should not be “mere interludes,” but should contribute to the unity of the plot (context).
...gan. "For ancient Greek theater, seating arrangement aided acoustics." The Whistle: Faculty/Staff News @ The Georgia Institute of Technology. Georgia Tech Communications & Marketing, 9 Apr. 2007. Web. 24 Nov. 2009. .
The chorus in Greek plays give advice, shows an emotional response, and their reaction is similar to the audience. As readers see in Ode IV, “But all eyes fail before time’s eye, /All actions come to justice there” (66). By the chorus representing the reader’s thoughts it provides comfort to the readers because they are not feeling alone. Reading about Oedipus, many people are upset and furious that he is so oblivious to the facts. With the chorus expressing their concern and thoughts, readers become the chorus, and feel a sense of comfort knowing that they are not alone with their thoughts. Reader’s rage is released once the chorus expresses their same concern.
They threw festivals for him. In 500 BC, a dramatist named Thespis implemented a solo actor, and he told speeches about each of the characters, and he changed his masks depending on which character was talking. He would talk to the narrator which was the chorus. In 471 BC, another dramatist named Aeschylus created a second actor which allowed dialogue between them on stage. Only three years later, Sophocles came up with an idea that would make a complex dramatic situation by adding a third character. They still kept the same ideas when there was only one actor on stage such as, switching characters means switching masks. The chorus itself acted like another character and not always a narrator. Because there were more actors on stage, they were able to expand their plays to the entire group of Greek mythology and not just the theatre god Dionysus (Ancient Greek Theatre). As time progressed, the acting industry started to form into modern day acting. They started to have more actors talking to actors instead of them talking to the chorus (Ancient Greek Theatre). Instead of having the audience surrounding the actors completely, the audience is now seated in front of them and slightly on the side. Back then, the actors purpose was to talk to the audience. They would talk to the audience more than they would talk to each other. Nowadays, the actors talk to each other, and they do not speak to the audience for the most because if they do, it would be out of character. The lines today are meant to be a real life scenario. It was not meant to argue with each other and try to get the audience on their side. Back then, they had a core group of actors, and they played together for several years. It was the same cast for each play. There are no new cast members. They had to perform a new play almost everyday, so they did not have a lot of time to rehearse. Today, the
This essay attempts to evaluate the significance of the Periclean’ building programme in Athens in the context of 5th Century BC Greek history and the importance of its lasting legacy. Implemented by and named after the most prominent, influential strategoi/generals of Athens in the 5th century BC, Pericles decided to rebuild the ruins left as reminders, of the Greco-Persian wars that finished in 449 BC. Not only did the building programme increase Athens’ aesthetics, the grandeur of the city, and satisfy Athenian religious needs, it was an important factor in reinforcing its power as the leader of the Athenian Empire. Equally important is the lasting legacy of the building programme today, as the magnificent structures define the Greek culture,
Euripides (485-406 BC) is considered a paramount tragedian from Ancient Greek culture. In Medea, Euripides depicts tragedy in an epic play both genders could partake in at that time by signifying drama. To Euripides, tragedy is a revolunatary form of speech to writing, intertwining too cultivate barbaric motifs of dystopian structure in literature. In dystopian Ancient Greek tragedian literature Euripides used powerful theatrical form of art to show everything being unpleasant or in bad standing to Athenian audiences. As the narrator begins to captivate the audience, he separates’ the performance into different episodes where Medea, actors play individuals’ roles, and a chorus of woman whom sings and dance as a group.