The City Dionsyia: Timeline Of Events

Question 1

What happened in the summer of the preceding year ? ( the year before the festival)

Answer 1

• tragic playwrights hoping to compete would present a synopsis of four plays ( 3 tragedy and 1 satyr) to Eponymous Archon
• comic playwrights would present a synopsis of 1 play
• the Archon would then select 3 tragic playwrights each to write 3 tragedies+ 1 satyr and five comic playwright

Question 2

A day or two before the festival

Answer 2

• the progan (pre contest) was held in the Odeon which was covered concert hall next to the theatre of Dionysus
• in the ceremony plays would be announced and each playwright delivered a short synopsis as well as some introductions of cast
• an actor may also read a short passage of the play to give the audience a chance to preview the play

Question 3

What would happen on the eve of the festival ?

Answer 3

• a wooden statue of Dionysus was brought into the city for a shrine just outside the city on the road to Eleutherae
• this re-enacted Dionysus arrival in Athens’s from the deme
• the statue was escorted to the theatre or Dionysus where a sacrifice would be made

Question 4

What happened on day 1 of the festival ?

Answer 4

• Grand procession (Pompe) in the morning
• outside the city and made its way into the Agora then through temple of Dionysus were it culminated with the sacrifice of a sacred bull+ other animals
• AFTERNOON
• dithyrambic competitions: choral dance in honour of Dionysus with each tribe in the contest 50 people
• each chorus had a Choregos and victory brought great prestige
• evening was the Komos held in the streets by only men

Question 5

What happened on day 2 ?

Answer 5

-Grand opening ceremony in theatre of Dionysus, Priest of Dionysus sacrifice a piglet at the alter + city’s ten generals poured libations to the 12 Olympian gods
- Three important presentation made
PARADE OF TRIBUTE: money from Athenian empire paraded through the theatre
PARADE OF HONOURS: herald announces names of individuals outstanding service for city and awarded them a crown
PARADE OF ORPHANS: boys and youths whose fathers died fighting paraded into the theatre

Five comic playwrights presented their plays

Question 6

What happened on day 3?

Answer 6

Three tragedies and a satyr play of one playwright

Question 7

What happened on day 4?

Answer 7

Three tragedies and a satyr play of one playwright

Question 8

What happened on day 5?

Answer 8

3 tragedies and 1 satyr play of one playwright

Judging took place: one comedy winner and one tragic playwright

Judges chosen at random via urn from each 10 tribe and then swore an oath of purity then wrote down his order of merit on a tablet

Five out of ten votes would be drawn and the winner declared on that

Question 9

What happened a few days after the festival v

Answer 9

The Athenian assembly met in the theatre of Dionysus to review the festival with any citizen allowed to make a complaint

If the complaint was upheld the Archon could be fined