, Research Paper

HOW WERE THE GREEK AND ROMAN THEATRES DESIGNED?

DEREK WATTERUD

ENGLISH-111

DECEMBER 7, 1994

The designs of theaters during the last five-hundred centuries b.c. varied in many ways of building and design. The proficient progresss in acoustics and building were tremendous. The arrangement of the seating and building of the phase and even sizes of the theaters varied from theater to theatre. They varied from open-air to roofed, both columned and free-spanned roofs. The versatility of utilizations of these auditoriums varied from keeping athleticss events to talkers and dramas.

Some of the chief architectural points of a theater were the cavity or orchestra, cavea, skene, phase, and the parodoi. The cavity or orchestra was normally a circle marked out by a rock margin straight in forepart of the phase for witnesss to utilize. The cavea was the seating which was normally a scope of stairss or patios for the witnesss to see the public presentation from. Generally, the natural incline of the hill was used and the cavity was located at the underside of the hill. The skene was a phase, dressing room, and normally a background all in one, it was by and large a edifice built of rock instantly behind the phase that extended to both sides of the phase with two to three doors in it to supply entree to the phase. The parodoi were inclines that lead from the cavity to the outside the theater to supply entree to the witnesss ( Molinari, 57 ) .

The book written by Picard and Cambridge entitled Theatre of Dionysus in Athens describes the theater as an alfresco theater that was built into a hillside as many of the theaters of that clip were. It was cut into the incline of the hill and used the natural incline of the hill to terrasse the seating country. The Dionysus used wooden benches which were really practical because of the easiness of building and they were nomadic. The orchestra was surrounded on the audience side by a rock patio. It was about 85 to 88 pess in diameter which was normal for that clip period. The alter was placed in the centre of the patio which made it a perfect location for talkers and it could be removed for dramas. During the early old ages of this theater there were no phase edifices. The edifices would be erected for each peculiar event, possibly a background of wood or canvas and a dressing room that is a collapsible shelter or hut. The phase sets for the dramas did non necessitate extended backgrounds and so backgrounds were non a job. The theater was finally renamed Pericles and was renovated in which the orchestra was moved further north and the seats were backed up by a steeper incline. This gave the phase more room for backgrounds and sets as was demanded by the dramas of Sophocles. The patio and back uping walls were besides redone to suit the steeper incline and they remained as such for the balance of the theatre & # 8217 ; s life. The long hall was constructed behind the phase and underneath the hall a drainage system was constructed to run out the orchestra of H2O. The drainage system was a channel about two pess broad which was connected to the channel that ran around the exterior of the orchestra. The theater was once more remodeled during the 4th century B.C. and renamed Lycurgus. In this redevelopment the wooden seating was replaced with a rock auditorium. The theater was remodeled and renamed to the Hellenistic Theatre in the 2nd or first century B.C. During this clip the scene was built, it was two narratives with two or three doors and a few columns with wooden panels between them where pictures were placed during dramas to function as a background. The theatre stayed in this signifier until it & # 8217 ; s death ( 5-154 ) .

In Izenours book on roofed theaters he states that the design and edifice of roofed theaters originated with the columned hall. The Telestrion or Hall of Mysteries was one of the first columned halls. The exterior walls were laid of ston

vitamin E that were penetrated by Windowss to supply both lighting and airing. The columns and cross braces for the roof were made about entirely of lumber. The maximal span between columns was 24 pess from centre to focus on to suit the lumber braces. The roof likely had a high opaion with three bays on each side for centre lighting. The edifice most likely sighted three to four 1000 people but there were jobs with sight lines to the phase in the centre of the room. The big columns obstructed about 60 per centum of the sing country ( 21-29 ) .

Izenour besides wrote that the Odeum of Pericles at Athens was cut into a hillside with three heavy retaining walls on the sides. The seats in this theater were likely wood and could hence be moved to suit the event taking topographic point. The inside was level floored with a raised phase and likely some risered seating. The roof was most likely dual hipped judging from the deficiency of occupied wharfs in the sidewalls which were indispensable for back uping balks. The maximal column span was likely 24 pess to suit the roof supports. There is no lasting grounds of Windowss so there arrangement could be any organic structure & # 8217 ; s conjecture. Seating capacity was approximately three to four 1000 with a small better sight lines that allowed about 60 per centum of the audience able to see the phase ( 30-32 ) .

The Thersilion at Megalopolis described by Izenour as being the first big hall of classical antiquity. From the exterior this hall resembled the two columned hall antecedently described, but on the interior there were many differences. Once inside everything but the forest of columns was different. The floor was sloped towards a level off-centered country that was square with columns at all four corners. There was a enormous betterment in sight lines due to the phase being off-centered and holding the aslant floor. The columns were besides placed in consecutive concentric rows, one behind the other. The seating was likely fabricated of wood, provided that there was any. The roof was made of wood and supported by columns with a high opaion over the phase. Although the theater could suit 10 thousand people while standing merely one-third to one half would hold been able to see the talker but that still leaves five 1000 that could ( 36-38 ) .

Izenour provinces that the clear-spanned auditorium came approximately in approximately three hundred b.c. This invention came approximately because of the jobs with sight lines in the theaters. The Eccleesiasterion at Priene was completed about two hundred b.c. and seated approximately six to seven hundred people on a steep, three sided, rectangular rock radius. There were six immense lumber trusses that supported a gabled roof. There still columns but the figure of them was reduced greatly. There were besides windows in the side walls but none in the roof. The sidewalls were made of rock with two of them bordering the theater to two other edifices.

There were great promotions made in the edifice and design of theaters in the five hundred old ages b.c. There were besides every bit many similarities as differences in the theaters built so. Many great dramatists had their productions performed in these theaters and many great talkers spoke in them and so they are a monolithic portion of our history. Even though we don & # 8217 ; t cognize to the full what the interior decorators had in head when they built these theaters, we do cognize that they learned from their errors which has helped interior decorators build better edifices since their clip.

Cheney Sheldon. The Theater: Three Thousand Old ages of Drama, Acting, and Stagecraft. New York. David McKay Co. 1958.

Izenour, George C. Roofed Theatres of Classical Antiquity. New Haven. Yale University Press. 1992.

Molinari, Cesare. Theatre Throughout the Ages. New York, McGraw-Hill Book Co. 1975.

Pickard, A.W. and Cambridge. The Theatre of Dionysus in Athens. London. Oxford University Press. 1956.