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Similarities between greek and modern theatre
The function of theatre in Greek society and the origins
The function of theatre in Greek society and the origins
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Throughout history, humans have always enjoyed being entertained. Whether it be through song, dance, or a moving story; the central need for something beautiful and miraculous has been there to touch our souls and inspire our minds. In the theatre, greatly written plays are no different. Playwrights look to entertain audiences and to fulfill a certain need within themselves when they create their unique worlds and stories. This is something that has occurred since the days of the Greeks when tragedies were one of the most influential forms of theatre. Tragedy as an art, can be used to show a person when they are experiencing life at its lowest level. This form of theatre also shows how the character handles the situation they are in and in …show more content…
most cases the consequences that follow. Which is a necessary component for any character to achieve to captivate audiences. But how is it that theatre became this way? How did the actors learn to portray these characters and show the beauty of humanity? Was theatre influenced in anyway by the arts? This paper will explore that using three key points. I will analyze and explain how theatre moved from being ritualistic to entertaining, how actors portrayed these complex characters. And how audiences reacted to it, and whether or not the importance of Aristotle’s ideas were valid and whether or not the play has to follow a singular unity for theatre of the time as well as subsequent periods. Civilizations have been practicing ritualistic ceremonies for over a Millennia.
Rituals were performed for many reasons such as a way to appease the gods, to bring in good harvests for the year, and even to bring rain. The ancient Greeks were no different and their festival of Dionysus was one of most important rituals of their time. The ritual which was held annually to celebrate the god Dionysus, was originally a bunch of different local festivals that celebrated the fermentation of new wine. There were many changes that took place when the festival was established. In John Brown’s Oxford Illustrated History of Theatre he says, that the Greeks decided to build a massive performance space or “orchestra” around a massive seating area known as the “theatron” This is where the Greeks would gather together and have many processions and sacrifices in Honor of the God all centered around two contests called Dithyramb.” These rituals were performed by primarily male Greeks with who would gather inside of the orchestra and chant and sing a rhythmic hymn that would praise their great god. (Brown 14) Theatre began to make the transition from rituals to performance when the Athenians decided to create a new kind of Art form called “tragoidia”. This unique art form was performed and Invented at the Great Dionysia where three dramatists competed each year and put on there performances (Brown 14-15) This hymn and the creation of tragedy is what I believe laid the foundations of theatre
and may have been what drove Thespis to decide that instead of singing to the gods, he would step into the circle and declare that he was Dionysus.
Plays at this time were a representation of life. People, at this time, did not have modern visual luxuries upon which to garner entertainment. Plays, as well as playwrights, were supposed to bring life to the people and life to the story,
The tradition of the tragedy, the renowned form of drama based on human suffering that invokes an accompanying catharsis, has principally become a discontinued art. Plays that evoke the sense of tragedy-the creations of Sophocles, Euripides, and William Shakespeare-have not been recreated often, nor recently due to its complex nature. The complexity of the tragedy is due to the plot being the soul of the play, while the character is only secondary. While the soul of the play is the plot, according to Aristotle, the tragic hero is still immensely important because of the need to have a medium of suffering, who tries to reverse his situation once he discovers an important fact, and the sudden downturn in the hero’s fortunes. Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman is the modern tragedy of a common man named Willy Loman, who, like Oedipus from Oedipus Rex by Sophocles, exhibits some qualities of a tragic hero. However, the character Willy Loman should not be considered a full-on tragic hero because, he although bears a comparable tragic flaw in his willingness to sacrifice everything to maintain his own personal dignity, he is unlike a true tragic hero, like Oedipus, because he was in full control of his fate where Oedipus was not.
arrangement, the importance of drama and religion, setting, location. and architectural features of the building. In ancient Greece, festivals were mainly held at the Great Dionysia. This was the oldest theatre in Greece and many plays were performed. here, for example, the first performance of Antigone.
Tragedies have been a form of plays for a long time, since the Greek’s time of high power, ever since Thespis created the first form of play write with only using one actor. Plays and tragedies have come a long way since then, gradually increasing the number of actors and their role in the plays that were created. One of the most influential play writes of his time was Sophocles, who used three characters and created more realistic dramatic scenes and created one of the most influential plays of the time Oedipus Rex. His plays focused on us humans under the influence of gods, and also created the Oedipus cycle, which told stories of a great king who violated the rules set upon by the gods. Fast forward several thousands of years to another most influential playwright William Shakespeare. William has created hundreds of works, but is most known for his tragedies, Such as Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Julius Caesar, King Lear, and so on, but the one I want to talk about a very well know Tragedy, and most famous one Made by Shakespeare, Hamlet, and compare it to the tragedy mentioned above, Oedipus Rex. These two Plays have some very similar themes, but also have some very different story lines. This essay will compare the two tragedies, on how they are similar, and contrast the differences these two plays have from each other.
In Euripides’ tragic play, Medea, the playwright creates an undercurrent of chaos in the play upon asserting that, “the world’s great order [is being] reversed.” (Lawall, 651, line 408). The manipulation of the spectators’ emotions, which instills in them a sentiment of drama, is relative to this undertone of disorder, as opposed to being absolute. The central thesis suggests drama in the play as relative to the method of theatrical production. The three concepts of set, costumes, and acting, are tools which accentuate the drama of the play. Respectively, these three notions represent the appearance of drama on political, social, and moral levels. This essay will compare three different productions of Euripides’ melodrama, namely, the play as presented by the Jazzart Dance Theatre¹; the Culver City (California) Public Theatre²; and finally, the original ancient Greek production of the play, as it was scripted by Euripides.
A book or a theatrical play can become the means through which writers can express their thoughts and convey their messages to society. In ancient times, Greek tragedies were a clever way for writers to judge the political world of the time, and make society reflect back on its own behavior and way of acting. Throughout the years, the form of a theatrical play underwent many changes that allowed the writers to express themselves more freely, without being limited to the strict rules of form and structure of a Greek tragedy. Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s play The Visit is a story that is set in the modern era of post-war Europe. A woman, whose life, through an ugly series of events, is ruined, returns to her hometown to get revenge for the misery
The theater of Dionysus stands at the foot of the acropolis and its date originates back to the 6th Century, B.C.. Its originally wood seats rise in tiers above one another against the slope of the acropolis, creating a natural setting for the plays (D'ooge, 231). The Greek Theater was built to house a drama which, during the festivals of Dionysus, had evolved from the long tradition of choral hymns which were presented each year. As Greek culture changed and flourished, entertainment transformed from being a series of choral chanting and dancing to placing an emphasis on the actor. As the actors' importance grew, there became a need for a stage from which they could be seen by each of the fourteen thousand spectators the theater housed. The chorus was still a very active part of the entertainment and they resided in the orchestra (Norwich, 64). The orchestra was the oldest part of the Greek theater and thus, when the actor was given
Myers, H. A. (1949). Aristotle's study of tragedy. Educational Theatre Journal, 1(2), 115. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1290192594?accountid=12085
Theater was an important part of Ancient Greek Civilization. History of Greek theatre began with religious festivals which aim to honor Dionysus, a god. During the festivals some citizens sing songs and perform improvisation plays and other participants of festivals judges this performances to decide which one of them was the best. These plays form the foundation of the Greek Theatre. Because of the competition between performers to create best performances, plays gained an aesthetic perspective and became a form of art. So, theatre as a part of religious rituals took attention of people and gained an importance in Ancient Greek Society.
open-air theatre. During the ancient times, it was used for the honor of the God
Tragedies have been written, told, and acted out for a number of years. Aristotle defined in his book, Poetics that a tragedy is to arouse the emotions of pity, fear, and finally a catharsis, or purging of emotions. A tragic play that perfectly completes this cycle of emotions is Oedipus the King by Sophocles. This play follows a king of the town of Thebes through his journey of the emotions of pity, fear, and finally a catharsis. It is a tale of a man who unknowingly kills his father and fathers the children of his mother as well. The audience is pulled into the play and experiences the plot along with Oedipus.
In contemporary theatre, a tragedy generally includes death and destruction, a romance gone horribly wrong, the hero or heroine’s total collapse, or any combination thereof. It puts the audience in a depressed, angry, or at least contemplative mood. In some ways, the Shakespearean tragedy does fit this mold: there is almost always an excess of dead people, and you can usually be sure you won’t laugh the theatre laughing.
A modern tragedy of today and a tragedy of ancient Greece are two very different concepts, but ironically, both are linked by many similarities. In “Poetics”, Aristotle defines and outlines tragedy for theatre in a way that displays his genius, but raises questions and creates controversy. Aristotle’s famous definition of tragedy states:
William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, and Ben Johnson are names that have resonated through the centuries. Not since ancient Athens has there been such gluttony of talent, producing stories for the ages. Might Athens be were these Englishmen found their inspiration? Greece produced its share of legendary playwrights; Sophocles and Euripides are two of the most famous. There are far m Elizabethan England gave birth to some of the most famous names in theatre. ore similarities between Elizabethan and Greek Theatre then there are differences. The influence of both eras is felt even today, stage productions of Shakespeare and Euripides are performed from London too Broadway and everywhere in between. I believe that both eras have influenced modern theatre simply because the Greek so obviously influenced Elizabethan theatre.
There is no doubt that tragedy has changed considerably since Aristotle first wrote the definition of tragedy in his Poetics in Ancient Greece, but these changes raise the question of whether modern tragedy still fits the classical definition of tragedy. Tragedy has evolved greatly since the times of the classical tragedies, including Oedipus Rex and Hamlet, to the more modern forms of tragedy, as seen in The Hairy Ape and Death of a Salesman. Despite its evolution and deviation from Aristotle’s definition, modern tragedy holds by the same principles, and retains the same power and message expressed by Aristotelian tragedy.