1. The Roman World of Plautus

3. Plautus: first writer of musical comedy
“A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” opened in 1962 with Zero Mostel
Many were surprised to learn it was a mixture of scenes from Plautine comedy
Authors of musical were updating Plautus’ techniques, just as he had done with his “sources”
Plautus fountainhead of modern comedy

4. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum “Everybody Ought to Have a Maid”

5. Life of Plautus Titus Maccius Plautus
Born at Sarsina in Umbria, ca. 254 B.C.
Recently conquered area
Native speech probably Umbrian, NOT Latin!
Perhaps educated in Rome?

6. Life of Plautus cont’d
Earned living in theatrical work - “in the working of the scenes and sets.”
Invested his savings in an overseas trading venture, but lost everything.
Probably traveled himself on this venture.
Acquired knowledge of Greek language and culture?

7. Life of Plautus cont’d Arrived back in Rome broke.
Went to work in a flour-mill.
While working here, he composed his first three plays, produced after 215 B.C.
Success allowed him to devote the rest of his life to dramatic composition.
Roman Citizen?

8. Life of Plautus cont’d
Over 130 plays were attributed to him, but Varro claims only 21 genuine: we now have 20 plus fragmentary play.
Wildly popular in his day.
Died in 184 B.C.
Epitaph:
Postquam est mortem aptus Plautus, comoedia luget,
scaena est deserta, dein risus, ludus, iocusque
Et numeri innumeri simul omnes conlacrimarunt.

9. Roman World in 2nd Century

11. Roman Drama Greek Influence? Greek vs. Roman worldviews
Natural vs. Man-made order

12. Greek Theaters Preference for hillside-sites
Spectacular natural vistas
Originally, no stone seating, no permanent scene building(s).

13. Theater at Epidaurus

14. Theater of Dionysos, Athens

15. Theater at Pergamon

16. Roman Theaters Early wooden structures - temporary.
Most often free-standing.
Very elaborate scene buildings.
Later, built of stone, sheathed with marble

17. Theater of Pompey first stone theatre in Rome, 55 B.C.

18. Odeon of Herodes Atticus, Athens

19. “Theater District” of Ancient Rome

20. Greek Influence in Plautus’ Plays
Greek “New Comedy” (Menander c B.C.) cf. “Old Comedy”
Purposefully non-political/escapist
Limited number of stock characters and plot-elements shuffled to produce new plays
Characters: the old man (father, grumpy/randy/drunken), the young man (son, angry, amorous, spendthrift), the young lady (prostitute/long-lost noblewoman), the slave (wily, greedy, self-interested)
Plot elements: love triangle, frustrated love, get the money, trick the father/uncle/authority figure, slave saves master, etc.

21. Plautus’ use of Greek New Comedy
Formerly thought that Plautus slavishly copied Greek plays.
True that in some cases (e.g. The Rope, Casina, Mercator, etc.) we know his plays to have been based on Greek archetypes.
But papyri suggest Plautus used considerable ingenuity to shape Greek plays for Roman audience.

22. Plautus and “New Comedy,” cont’d
Fragment of Greek archetype for Bacchides shows that Plautus felt free to cut and/or meld scenes for his Roman purposes and setting.
Added new jokes, puns, often very specific to Roman culture - cf. Greek love of comic irony
Role of stock character, “The Parasite,” is greatly expanded - fits Roman client system
Character and Plot development less important than immediate comic effect.

23. Plautus and “New Comedy,” cont’d
Much more use of “metatheatrical” elements - bringing in the crowd.
Dramatic illusion not maintained
(before a long-winded speech) “ O.K., but hurry, the crowd’s getting thirsty….”
In general, much more focus on clever verbal effects like alliteration, word-play, unexpected personifications, and riddling phraseology.
“…twist the neck of wrongdoing…”

24. Plautus’ musical comedy
Roman comedy composed in verse
Plautus uses many different meters
Songs may have made up as much as 40% of each play, some of dialogue also chanted or recited to flute
Song and dance routines perhaps Italian influence

25. The “Magic” of Plautus Why was he so popular?
Secret lies in the context of ancient drama, i.e. religious festival days - official holidays spent drinking, feasting, watching athletic contests, and drama.
Holidays as “inversion” of the normal Roman world.

26. Roman Festivals and Comic Inversion
Licentia and Libertas ruled on festival days, as opposed to the severitas and disciplina of daily routine.
Likewise, comedy allows a temporary reversal of social norms: what is not done and said in real life is done and said on the comic stage.
“The joy of release (laughter) is in direct proportion to the severity of the restraint.”

27. Festivals and Comic Inversion, cont’d
The burden of mos maiorum and gravitas
Patriapotestas - family obligations
Munus - state/social obligations
Frugalitas - money obligations
Pietas - divine obligations
Festivals as “Holiday for the superego”

28. Plautus’ Comic Inversion
So, in Plautus’ comedies, performed on festival days:
The action takes place in the Greek East (pergraecamini!)
sons hate/trick/swindle their fathers and mothers
Young aristocrats care nothing for money, only love
Slaves have little real loyalty to or fear of masters, whom they often make ridiculous.
The gods are humanized and humans approach godhead
In sum, the characters are made to act as un-Roman as possible while making jokes that would only make sense in a Roman world.