1. ROMAN THEATRE

2. Brief Roman History by 345 B.C 240 B.C
There were over 175 festivals a year
240 B.C
The beginnings of Roman theatre recorded
The first record of drama at the
ludi Romani (Roman Festival or
Roman Games).

3. Brief Roman History
55 B.C
First stone theatre built in Rome by order of Julius Caesar.

4. Roman Theatre Borrowed Greek ideas and improved (?) upon them
Topics less philosophical
Entertainment tended to be grandiose, sentimental, diversionary

5. Roman Theatre Included more than drama : acrobatics gladiators
jugglers
athletics
chariots races
naumachia (sea battles)
boxing
venationes (animal fights)

7. Roman Theatre 3 Major Influences Greek Drama
Etruscan influences, which emphasized circus-like elements
Fabula Atellana – which introduced FARCE (Atella was near Naples).

8. Roman Theatre
Farce
Short improvised farces, with stock characters, similar costumes and masks
based on domestic life or mythology
burlesque, parody
Most popular during the 1st century B.C., then frequency declined

9. Roman Theatre
Farce
Probably was the foundation for commedia dell ‘Arte
Productions included “stock” characters:
Bucco: braggart, boisterous
Pappas: foolish old man
Dossenus: swindler, drunk, hunchback

10. Roman Theatre Serious or comic (satiric) No masks Had women
Violence depicted literally
Scoffed at Christianity

11. Roman Festivals
Held in honor of the gods, but much less religious than the Greeks
Performances at festivals probably paid for by the state.
Were often lengthy and included a series of plays or events, and probably had prizes awarded.

12. Roman Festivals ludi Romani oldest of the official festivals
held in September and honored Jupiter
regular performance of comedy and tragedy began in 364 B.C.

13. Roman Tragedy Characteristics of Roman Tragedy
5 acts/episodes divided by choral odes
included elaborate speeches
interested in morality
unlike Greeks, they depicted violence on stage

14. Roman Tragedy Characteristics of Roman Tragedy
characters dominated by a single passion which drives them to doom (ex: obsessiveness or revenge)
developed technical devices such as: soliloquies, asides, confidants
interest in supernatural and human connections

15. Roman Tragedy Seneca (5 or 4 B.C. – 65 A.D.)
only playwright of tragedy whose plays survived
Nine extant tragedies, five adapted from Euripides (Gr.)
Though considered to be inferior, Seneca had a strong effect on later dramatists.

16. Roman Tragedy Seneca (5 or 4 B.C. – 65 A.D.)
WroteThe Trojan Women, Media, Oedipus, Agamemnon, etc., which were all based on Greek originals
His plays were probably closet dramas—never presented, or even expected to be.

17. Roman Comedy Characteristics of Roman Comedy Chorus was abandoned
No act or scene divisions
Concerned everyday, domestic affairs
Action placed in the street

18. Roman Comedy Material from only 2 playwrights survived
Platus (c B.C.)
Terence (195 or B.C.)

19. Roman Theatre Design
First permanent Roman theatre built 54 A.D. (100 years after the last surviving comedy)

20. Roman Theatre Design General Characteristics
Built on level ground with stadium-style seating (audience raised)

21. Roman Theatre Design General Characteristics Stage raised to five feet
Stages were
large –
20-40 ft deep
ft long

22. Roman Theatre Design General Characteristics dressing rooms
Theatre could seat 10-15,000 people
dressing rooms
in side wings
stage was
covered with
a room

23. Roman Theatre Design General Characteristics trap doors were common
cooling system – air blowing over streams of water
awning over the audience to protect them from the sun

25. Roman Theatre Design Scaena “stage house” joined with audience to
form one
architectural
unit

26. Circus Maximus- (Circo Massimo)
Roman Theatre Design
Circus Maximus- (Circo Massimo)
Primarily for Chariot racing
Permitted 12 chariots to race at once
Largest Roman Amphitheater
Could seat
150,000 spectators