Ancient Greek Theatre Analysis

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Ancient Greek theatre flourished between 550 BC and 220 BC (Hall, Sean, Alan, & Laura, 2015). Dionysus, the son of the Greek god Zeus and mortal Semele, was the god of wine, fertility and divine ecstasy (Dionysus, 1997-2015). He became a significant god to the Greek society due to his association with concepts such as rebirth after death (as he was dismembered by the Titans and then returned to life), and the perception that under the influence of wine, a mortal possessed a great power (Dionysus, 1997-2015). Unlike 21st century physical theatre, Greek theatre focused on honouring the god, Dionysus, who was a patron of the arts. Many Greek plays were written to be performed at festivals that were held in the city of Athens. However, as these festivals began to be celebrated across Greece, the religious aspects diminished and theatrical elements expanded. Despite this, Greek theatre resembled Greece’s cultural identity and focused on expressing and celebrating stories about their gods. …show more content…

There was a belief, deeming it impossible for playwrights to successfully write tragic and comedic plays and so ancient Greek playwrights were to follow only one genre of the three (Hall, Sean, Alan, & Laura, 2015). This proclaim suggests that playwrights have limitations as artists, XXX There is overwhelming evidence presenting playwrights to have the ability to write both tragic and comedic plays, and this has even developed into an entire genre termed tragicomedy, where both tragic and comedic elements are implemented into one storyline. An example of a tragicomedy is The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare, where the comic structure and tragic components coexist with one

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