GROUP 1 – GREEK

AND ROMAN
THEATER
 GREEK THEATER
Theater - where the playwrights write scripts
These people work collaboratively and act each one's important roles in a theater:
 Directors - oversee and lead rehearsals
 Technical Crew - work behind-the scenes
 Actors - perform on stage

Athens & Greece

 place where the first recorded form of European theater started
 began around the sixth century BCE during religious festivals in honor of Dionysus
Dionysus - Greek god of wine and fertility
Thespis -
 was considered as the first actor
 believed to won a dramatic play competition at the festival
 introduced the use of masks in Greek theaters

Some actors are referred to as Thespians.

Masks - depict the expressions of age and emotions

During those times, women were not allowed to perform; men wore female masks and played
their parts.
 GREEK THEATER
TWO TYPES OF GREEK PLAYS:
 Comedy
- any sort of play that made people laugh
 Tragedy
- an influential popular form of drama
- Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides were the most famous playwrights of this
genre
* In a Greek theater, tragedy is the most admired type of play, unlike in Roman.
Theatron - open-theater where the Greek tragedy was performed

In Greek, tragedy is more popular.

In Roman, comedy is more popular.
Dionysus
Thespis
Euripid Sophocl Aeschyl
es es us
 PARTS OF A GREEK THEATER
 Diozomata - in architecture, the landing places and passages which were
carried round the semicircle and separated the upper and lower tiers in a
Greek theatre.
 Kerkides – of the seating areas into sections
 Theatron/Koilon/Cavea – seating area that was organized in different
sections that corresponded to the social class of the viewers
 Prohedia – most honored seats reserved especially for priests, notably the
priest of Dionysus and dignitaries
 Orchestra – constructed in a circular manner, semi circular for Roman
Theater
 Skene – tent behind the orchestra where the backdrop is hung and where
the actors can hide and change their costumes
 GREEK ACTORS’ COSTUMES &
PROPS
Mask - served several important purposes in Ancient Greek theater: their exaggerated
expressions helped define the characters the actors were playing; they allowed actors
to play more than one role (or gender); they helped audience members in the distant
seats see and, by projecting sound somewhat ke a small megaphone, even hear the
characters better.
- In a tragedy, masks were more life-like; in a comedy or satyr play, masks were ugly
and grotesque. Masks were constructed out of lightweight materials such as wood,
linen, cork, and sometimes real hair. Unfortunately, they lacked durability, and none
has survived.
Costumes - along with masks and props, helped indicate the social status, gender,
and age of a character. Athenian characters wore more elaborate, decorated versions
of everyday clothing, such as a tunic or undergarment, a cloak or over-garment.
- Costumes for characters that were non-Athenians were more outlandish. Tragic
actors wore buskins (raised platform shoes) to symbolize superior status, while comic
actors wore plain socks. When depicting women, actors wore body stockings, with a
progastreda and a prosterneda to make their bodies appear feminine. Some plays
even called for actors to wear animal costumes.
 GREEK ACTORS’ COSTUMES &
PROPS
Props - In addition to masks, actors also used props to create a character. These
could be a crown to represent a king; a lyre for a musician; a walking stick to suggest
age; a caduceus for a messenger; spears and helmets to suggest military men.
- A "props-maker" would create and provide these to the actors. Props can also be
used for symbolism, as in the red carpet Agamemnon walks on when he returns
home from war, signifying the blood he spilled at Troy.
SPECIAL PROPS
Ekkyklêma - Literally, "wheel out," a large wheeled platform that could be rolled
out to display scenes that had taken place beyond the view of the spectators (usually
the results of violent acts since those never took place on stage).
Mêchanê/Krane - Literally, "machine," a crane-like device used to lift actors,
allowing performers to appear in the air or to enter dramatically from behind the
skene (which was a common method of portraying the gods).
Mask Costumes

Props Special Props

 OEDIPUS REX: A GREEK DRAMA
Oedipus the King - is an Athenian tragedy by Sophocles that was first performed
around 429 BC. Originally, to the ancient Greeks, the title was simply Oedipus, as
it is referred to by Aristotle in the Poetics. It is thought to have been renamed
Oedipus Tyrannus to distinguish it from another of Sophocles's plays, Oedipus at
Colonus. In antiquity, the term "tyrant" referred to a ruler with no legitimate claim
to rule, but it did not necessarily have a negative connotation.
- Of Sophocles's three Theban plays that have survived, and that deal with the
story of Oedipus, Oedipus Rex was the second to be written. However, in terms
of the chronology of events that the plays describe, it comes first, followed by
Oedipus at Colonus and then Antigone.

- Oedipus Rex is regarded by many scholars as the masterpiece of ancient Greek

tragedy. In his Poetics, Aristotle refers several times to the play in order to
exemplify aspects of the genre.
 ROMAN THEATER
Roman Theaters - were typically constructed in large, open, public areas. They were usually built
in areas with a larger population so that many could attend performances. Because of the height
of the scaena frons, these theaters had to be high-rise buildings of sort, and these could be built
because of one of Rome’s greatest inventions: concrete. The skill of Roman builders and large
size of its structures are plainly seen in the Colosseum, which held 50,000 attendees, far more
than any Greek theater.
- Roman theatres were built in all areas of the empire from Spain to the Middle East. Because of
the Romans' ability to influence local architecture, we see numerous theatres around the world
with uniquely Roman attributes.
- These buildings were semi-circular and possessed certain inherent architectural structures,
with minor differences depending on the region in which they were constructed. The scaenae
frons was a high back wall of the stage floor, supported by columns. The proscaenium was a
wall that supported the front edge of the stage with ornately decorated niches off to the sides.
The Hellenistic influence is seen through the use of the proscaenium. The Roman theatre also
had a podium, which sometimes supported the columns of the scaenae frons. The theatre itself
was divided into the stage (orchestra) and the seating section (auditorium). Vomitoria or
entrances and exits were made available to the audience.
 PARTS OF A ROMAN
AMPITHEATER
Amphitheater - where ancient Romans performed their plays -derived from the Greek word amphi, meaning
“two” and theatros meaning “theater”.
Amphitheater consisted of 2 separate structures:
• Horse-shoe-shaped seating area -eliptical seating area enclosing a flat performance space
• Free-standing stage building
- semicircular
- possessed certain natural architectural structures with minor differences depending on the area where they
were constructed
Colosseum or Coliseum - oval amphitheater built in the center of Rome, Italy
- built of concrete and sand
- largest amphitheater ever built by the Flavian dynasty
- named as Flavian Ampitheater
Arena - enlarged area for performances
 Flavian
Ampitheate Arena
r
 ROMAN THEATRE COSTUMES &
PROPS
• Masks were exaggerated and sometimes vulgar. Masks were only worn by actors that
had many different parts in a play. They were very important in pantomime. Although
the masks were made to represent the actors character, they were very exaggerated
like a caricature. A purple costume identified a rich man. Boys wore striped togas.
• Soldiers wore short cloaks. Red costumes indicated a poor man. A yellow robe meant
the character was a woman. Short tunics meant a slave.
• A yellow tassel meant the character was a god. Identification Roman actors would wear
a cheap and simple sandal called the Baxa. It was made from vegetable leaves, twigs,
and fibers. Palm leaves woven together were used to make the bottom of the shoe. The
strap of the baxa was also made from palm leaves and vegetable leaves.
• Roman costumes were made to imitate traditional Greek clothing. The most common
design was a long robe, called a Chiton. A himation was usually worn over a chiton.
The chiton and himation were usually colored.
• An upper garment worn by Grecian and Roman women is called Peplus.
Chiton
Peplus
Tunic
Buskin - A foot and leg covering reaching halfway
to the knee, resembling a laced half boot.
- thick-soled laced half boot worn by actors of
Greek and Roman tragedies.
 THANK YOU!
BY: TIFFANY – JAN G. RONDUEN, ALEKSSANDRA BEATRICE BARRIENTOS,
ARIELLE JAMAL B. GO, LAURENCE A. ABALOS, PABLO GOMEZ, GIFE
LAFORTEZA, MIGUEL KRISTOPHER N. BANATIN & JAN JOSEPH L. TAYAM