1. Roman Theatre

2. Remember Greek Theatres Delphi

4. Roman Theatres When Rome conquered Greece it borrowed a lot from Greek culture, including Theater. Roman Theater thrived from the 3 rd century BCE to the first century CE. This Roman theater is in Libya.

5. Roman Theatre Structure Roman Theatre took place at the Ludi – games or festivals, which were religious & political

6. Permanent Roman Theatres

7. Other Roman Entertainments Chariot Races Gladatorial Combat Bloodsports This is why Roman Theatre was FREE

8. Naumachia

9. Roman Actors More than three Cloth masks No chorus Prologues and Epilogues Black wigs for young characters, white wigs for older characters, red wigs for slaves and servants

10. Three Roman Playwrights Plautus – based his plays on Greek New Comedy – situational comedy Terence – Wrote more literary comedy Seneca – Wrote very literary tragedies, intended for reading rather than performing

11. Popular Entertainment Street entertainment existed since Greek times Mimes –No Masks –Women actors –Improvisation

12. And then Rome became Christian, and then Rome Collapsed Christians oppose theater on moral grounds (Antitheatrical prejudice) 410 CE – Visigoths sack Rome – end of Eastern Roman Empire and Beginning of the “Dark ages” Popular entertainments continue – Commedia del Arte – but not much else … and then, 500 years later, Theater re- emerges from…

13. The Christian Church Liturgical Drama – Began with tropes inserted into the Easter service in early 900s. Many biblical episodes are dramatized, but the nativity and crucifixion almost never Staged inside the church with small mansions and platea Costuming was not elaborate, usually modified church vestments Special effects included flying machinery Dialogue was chanted in Latin

14. Cycle Plays Pope Urban IV creates the Feast of Corpus Christi in 1264 – Procession and plays that take place on the Thursday following Trinity Sunday (in late May or June) – Cycle Plays are born Liturgical Drama moves outdoors

15. Latin is replaced with vernacular drama – beginnings of national differences in drama Medieval Cycle Plays – glorified God, educated people, brought wealth & prestige to town Exclusively religious subject matter (Christian) Produced by the city government working with Guilds – not the church Organized by a “pageant master” who was director, line producer, and promoter Most actors are townsfolk – amateurs, usually but not exclusively male

16. 15 th to 16 th Centuries Cycle plays expand to Morality Plays – didactic dramas, religious in theme but not biblical. Then plays began to emphasize entertainment over morality Professionals were suddenly possible Inns of court lead to dedicated theater buildings and…

17. The Man Secular Drama Exploded