Greek Theatre Flashcards
What is an agon?
A formal debate in which the playwright can showcase opposing arguments
What was an auletes?
An aulos player, each chorus was accompanied by one
What was an aulos?
a double reed musical instrument similar to an oboe
Who were the Bacchants?
female followers of Dionysus
What was Bacchism?
The cult worship of Dionysus
What was a Catharsis?
A word meaning ‘cleansing’ or ‘purification’
What was a chiton?
A full length robe- ornately decorated
What were the choral odes?
songs performed by the chorus
Who was the choregos?
the financial backer attached to a playwright to support the production of the plays
what was the crane?
A device which raised an actor above the level of the skene building
what was a deme?
A village or district of Attica
What was the dithyramb?
A choral song sung in honour of Dionysus
What was the parados?
the entry way into the orchestra from each side of the theatre
What were the Eleusinian Mysteries
An important religious cult in honour of Demeter and her daughter Persephone. Anyone who wished could be initiated into the cult
What was the eponymous archon?
A leading politician of Athens who was responsible for running the City Dionysia.
What was the exodus?
The final section of a play
What was a hamartia?
A word which meant ‘mistake’ in a tragedy- such a mistake would lead to a disastrous outcome
What was hubris?
A range of behaviours from outrageous or excessive behaviour through to physical or sexual assault
What were the iambus?
The spoken sections of the play (Iambics)
What was a kommos
A formal song sung in moments of heightened emotion involving dialogue between an actor and the chorus
what was a komos?
a loosely organised revel through the streets with song and dance
What were kothornoi?
Soft leather boots which reached up to the thigh
What was the Lenaea?
A drama festival held in Athens in late January
What was a lyric?
The sung sections of a play. Choral odes are always composed in lyric, and accompanied by dancing , but the characters sometimes also sing in lyric at particularly emotional times
Who were the maenads?
An alternative name for the Bacchants
What is a monody?
A solo song by an actor, often sung at moments of great distress
what does ‘oikos’ mean?
literally ‘house’ this term is used to describe a household or family unit
what is the orchestra?
the ‘dancing area’ below the theatron where the chorus performed
what is the parabasis?
A section of comedy in which the chorus addresses the audience directly, speaking in the voice of the playwright
what is the parodos?
the first ode which the chorus perform while coming into the theatre
What was the peripeteia?
A terrible reversal of fortune in tragedy
What does ‘physis’ mean?
Personal nature, something you are born with and cannot be changed by circumstances
what does ‘pietas’ mean?
duty to the family, to the state and to the gods
What does ‘polis’ mean?
the word for a Greek city state
What was a pompe
A grand religious procession
What was the proagon
An event which acted as a preview and introduction to the festival
What was the prohedria?
the front row seating in the theatron reserved for VIPs
What is a prologue?
the opening of the play which sets the scene
What was the Rural Dionysia
a drama festival held in the rural demes of Attica in mid-winter
What was a satyr?
A mythological creature who was a follower of Dionysus. Half human and half animal
What was a satyr-play?
A play which parodied tragedy and was presented along with three tragedies by the same playwright
What was the ‘simpulum’
A ritual ladle used for pouring libations and sacrificesw
What was the skene
A wooden hut used as a backdrop and for actors to change
What was a sophist?
A group of influential philosophers in fifth century Athens, whose interests included religion, ethics, rhetoric and science
What was a ‘stasimon’
The name for a choral ode after the parados
What is a stichomythia
A dialogue in which two characters speak alternate lines of verse. This makes exchanges punchy, and is particularly appropriate for the agon.
What was the theatron?
The seating area in a Greek Theatre
What was the Theoric Fund
A fund provided by the Athenian state which ensured that poorer citizens could afford to attend the City Dionysia
What was a thyrsus?
A ritual staff made of a fennel stalk carried by the followers of Dionysus
What is tragic irony?
where the playwright contrasts the characters limited knowledge with the audience’s wider understanding
what was a tribe?
A political division in Athens. there were 10 of them
What was ‘tyrannos’
A tyrant or king (not necessarily a negative meaning)
What is the wheel platform
A wooden platform on wheels brought on stage which showed a scene from off stage
