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Greek
Theater
The land
Overview of GreekTheTheatre
myths
The stage
The Land
Greece has thousands of inhabited islands
and dramatic mountain ranges
Greece has a rich culture and history
Democracy was founded in Greece
Patriarchal (male dominated) society
Philosophy, as a practice, began in Greece
(Socrates, Plato, Aristotle)
The Land
The Land
The stage
The myths
The Stage
Three Main
Portions of Greek
Theatre:
Skene Portion of
stage where actors
performed
(included 1-3 doors
in and out)
Orchestra
Dancing Place
where chorus sang
to the audience
Theatron Seating
for audience
The Stage
The Stage
The Stage
Greek plays were performed during religious
ceremonies held in honor of Dionysus, the
Greek god of wine and revelry (altars generally
on stage)
Banks would shut down for days, people would
travel from all around to see the drama
competitionseven prisoners were temporarily
released to see the plays
Tragedy means goat song (relates to
Dionysian rituals)
The Stage
Masks of Greek
Theater
Masks of
Greek
Theater
Modern-day replicas
Hero-King
Comedy
(Servant or Herald )
Tragedy
(Weeping Chorus)
Theater at Epidaurus
Theater at Epidaurus
524 B.C.
Seven Against
Thebes
Sophocles
496 B.C.
Antigone
Oedipus
Euripides
480 B.C.
Medea
Dramatist
Born
Wrote
Sophocles Antigone
Set in Thebes (a city in ancient Greece)
Antigone is the daughter of Oedipus and
Jocasta
Antigones brothers, Eteokles and
Polyneces, took opposite sides in a war
Eteokles and Polyneces killed each other
in battle
Antigones uncle, Kreon, became king of
Thebes
Sophocles
Euripides Medea
Jason and
Medea meet
Corinth: Where Jason
and Medea settle down
The land
The stage
The myths
Roots in Worship of
Dionysus
Theater of Dionysus
Dionysia was an annual festival
in honor of the god Dionysus
Theater of Dionysus was an
open-air Theater with room for
fifteen thousand spectators
Theater of Dionysus
carved out of a stone
hillside
looked like a
semicircle with
steeply rising tiers of
seats
Theater of Dionysus
Theater of Dionysus
At the bottom was
the rounded
orchestra or
performance area
where the chorus
sang and danced
Theater of Dionysus
Behind the orchestra
was an open, almost
bare, stage where
actors spoke their lines
from behind huge masks
Theater of Dionysus
Male actors performed all
the roles
Actors switched masks to
play a number of roles
both female and male
To give hope
The ancient citizens of
Greece would sacrifice and
pray to an ORACLE.
An oracle was a priest or
priestess who would send a
message to the gods from
mortals who brought their
requests.
Oracle of Delphi
Oracle of Delphi
Delphi
Delphi
Mount Olympus
Where the
Olympians
lived.
The
Olympians
Are the 12
Main Gods
The Olympians
Zeus
King of gods
Heaven
Storms
Thunder
lightning
Poseidon
Zeuss brother
King of the sea
Earthquakes
Horses
Hades
Brother to Zeus and
Poseidon
King of the Underworld
(Tartarus)
Husband of Persphone
Ares
God of war
Hephaestus
God of fire
Craftspeople
Metalworkers
Artisans
Apollo
God of the sun
Music
Poetry
Fine arts
Medicine
Hermes
Messenger to the gods
Trade
Commerce
Travelers
Thieves & scoundrels
Dionysus
God of Wine
Partying (Revelry)
Hera
Queen of gods
Women
Marriage
Childbirth
Demeter
Goddess of Harvest
Agriculture
Fertility
Fruitfulness
Mom to Persephone
Hestia
Goddess of Hearth
Home
Community
Athena
Goddess of wisdom
Practical arts
War
Aphrodite
Goddess of love and beauty
Artemis
Goddess of hunting
and the moon.
The
Storyline
Central
Character is of
the Elite Class
Central
Character
suffers a
Downfall
Central
Character is
Neither Wholly
good nor
wholly evil
Downfall is the
result of a
Fatal Flaw
Misfortunes
involve
characters
who are
related or who
are friends
Tragic actions
take place
offstage
Central
Character has
a moment of
recognition
Audience
experiences
pity and fear
The End