Theatre History

Theatre has existed since the dawn of man due to man’s tendency for story-telling. The first recorded formal theatrical event was in ancient Egypt around 2500 BC where they performed the sacred plays of the myth of Osiris and Isis. Every portion of the world has it’s own theatre history (which you will study later for your projects).

Greek Theatre Other info: Places: People: Athens was the center location for competitions. Theatre of Dionysius was an open air theatre built like a football stadium. Held thousands of people (around 14,000-17,000 people) Theaters built into hillsides so people could see Behind the stage aka orchestra was the skene (skaynee) a small hut building for dressing rooms. People: Sophocles- playwright. Wrote about the relationship between the gods & man Euripides- wrote about psychology in women Thespis- winner of one of the playwriting competitions. First actor stepped away from the Greek chorus. Aeschylus (es-kil-us) wrote 90 plays. Often called “Father of Tragedy” Aristophanes- wrote comedies. Made fun of leaders of Athens & the gods Plays: all religious and about the Greek gods Orestia, Agamemnon, Euminides (Aeschylus) Oedipus, Antigone, Electra (Sophocles) Trojan Women, Medea, Hippolytus, Cyclops (Euripides) Birds, Clouds, Frogs (Aristophanes) Tech: large masks with microphones. Changed masks to change character. The performances took place on the group level called the orchestra No electricity so plays started early morning and went till sunset Deus ex machina- the god machine. Crane that helped actors fly Other info: Started at religious festivals for Dionysius. Drama at first, added comedy later. Greek chorus words come from Greece: theatre, drama, comedy, and tragedy (comes from tragos meaning goat song because during the festival they sacrificed a goat and sang a song as part of the celebration

Greek Theatre- Places skene Theater of Dionysus Built into a hillside

Greek Theatre- Festival of Dionysus Thespis

Greek Theatre- Tech Deus ex machina Masks

Italian Renaissance Theatre Places: Rome (very wealthy area, so they had lots of time and $ for entertainment.) Teatro Olimpico- in Vicenza Italy, oldest surviving theatre Roman Coliseum People: Seneca- wrote tragedies (took plots from Greek plays and rewrote) Titus Plautus Terence (aka Publius Terentius Afer) Plays: Trojan Women, Medea, Oedipus, Agamemnon (Seneca wrote, all based on greek plays) They eliminated the chorus Neoclassicism- focused on being true to life (verisimilitude) Commedia plays- The Miser, the Misanthrope, the Imaginary invalid Tech: Added music in place of the chorus The entire setting of a play took place in one time in one place, no set or scene changes. (called unity of time, unity of place, and unity of action Scaenae frons- permanent stone structure that represented facades of houses .this had doorways which represented the different main characters homes and they used this for entrances and exits. Very little scenery. Outdoors Other info: Extreme Realism Commedia dell’arte- “Comedy performed by professional artists,” Stock characters (young lovers, servant, father, soldier) ALL IMPROVISED. Very physical performances (flips, leaps, etc.)  The plots were simple: two young lovers (the innamorati) were kept apart by il vecchi (the old men – fathers/guardians, elderly suitors, etc.) The zanni (servants) helped to outwit the old men and bring the lovers together.

Italian Theatre- Tech Scaenae frons

Italian Theatre- Places Roman Coliseum Teatro Olympico

Commedia Dell’Arte the old men – fathers/guardians, elderly suitors (AKA Vecchi) Young lovers (AKA innamorati Servants (AKA Zanni)

English (Elizabethan) Theatre Places: permanent theatres began to arise. Before plays were done in town squares Theaters were round and had 3 levels of seating called galleries. The pit is where poor people stood, and those people were called groundlings. For a large fee people could sit on stage. The Globe theatre- Shakespeare’s theater People: Christopher Marlowe- Shakespeare's rival. Most famous playwright until Shakespeare started Ben Jonson-. He was a rebel & was always in trouble with the law. Shakespeare- considered greatest playwright of all time. 37 plays, 154 sonnets. Plays: Court plays- came after Shakespeare. They were more sophisticated and serious. Shakespeare’s plays were boisterous the Jew of Malta, , the Tragical History of Doctor Faustus (Marlowe) The Alchemist, Every man in his humor (Jonson) Romeo, Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, midsummer, shrew (Shakespeare) Tech: Theaters had partial roofs called the Heavens because of the stars drawn on them. The other half was open and used for lighting the stage They had lots of trap doors Flags on top of theatre show there will be a play Tiring house-area behind the stage, this served as a backdrop. Inner stage- roofed area at back of stage to give impression of being inside Other info: No women on stage During this time acting went from a hobby to a career Civil war in 1642 stopped theatre for a while. Puritans banned theatre and stages were destroyed

English theatre- places The Globe Theater

English Theatre- People Christopher Marlowe William Shakespeare Ben Johnson Rebel- known for getting into trouble with the law Shakespeare’s rival- most popular until Shakespeare Most well-known author of all time

English Theatre- Tech The Heavens  If the flag was black, a tragedy was scheduled; white flag meant comedy; and a red flag meant a history play.