Topic 4: Dramatic festivals Flashcards
Purpose of theatre in Athens.
- Lenea - In january, comedy and tragedy but maily comedy. Only Athenians could attend due to sea-crossing being hard in Jan.
- City Doinysia - in March, it was the most impotant amatic festival held in honour of Dionysus.
- Rural Dionysia - In dec to Jan, a local festival held by the demes of Attica. Probably replayed performances of the Lenaea and city dionysia.
Build up of the city dionysia
- held for five days
- organised by the eponymous archon
- three tragedies and 5 comedies.
- to be selected they had to submit a summery of the playas
- the CHON WOULD APPOUINT a choregos to fund each playights work
- before the fesgtival the pre contest of proagon was held. this was held in odeo and would intoduce the plays to the audience as a summeyr.
Five days of City Diomysia
- Eve of the festival - torchlit procession, take statue to the theate of Dionysus, sacrifices performed.
- Day 1 - 200 sacrifices, dithyrumbic competitions held, ea h tribe would enter two chorus’ and perform in the orchestra.
- Day 2 - 10 generals poured offerings to Dionysus, 3 parades held, 5 comdeies performed, a piglet sacrificed.
- Day 3- 3 tragedies and one satyr-play performed, one from each playrigth.
- Day 4 - 3 more tragedies and a satyr-play.
- Day 5 - 3 tagedies, one satyr, juding, names chosen from each tribe, pulled 5 tablets from the urn, this was avoiding bias as political figures often funded playwrights, the winner crowned with cown of ivy.
- A few days afterwards they would talk about whether the festival was successful and citizens could complain, if no complaints then the eponymousarchon would gte a crown for his service.
Role of choregos
- a wealthuy Athenian appointed by the eponymousarchon to fund one of the playwrights.
- This was essentially a tax paid by the wealthy elites to fund the festivals.
- It was a good opportunity for a rich Athenian to gain fame as the winner woukld get their name carved on a victory monument.
- Pericles funded Aedchylus.
Judging
- The judges wee chosen at andom the morning of the performance.
- On the day of the plays one name was drawn out of each urn by the eponymous achon, which made a panel of ten judges who swoe an oath to be impartial.
- On the fifth day, the judges rankd the plays in order of preference ans placed this on a tablet, in an urn.
- The eponymous archon then selected five of these tablets and counted up the votes, then declaring the winner.
- After a few days they checked to see if it was a success and if there was no complainsts the eponymoud achon wa given a cron fdo his service.
Athenian tragedy writers
•Aeschylus is described as father of tragedy.
•His first vidtory was in the city dionysus.
•He was in the Elusinian mysteries.
•Sophocles was the most celebrated playwright for 50 yeats and won 24 out of 30 competitions.
•He qrote ober 120 plaua but only 7 survived.
•Euripides influenced modern drama with ordinary people as heroes.
•His characters talked about the present more controversially amd even challenged democratic order.
Athenian tragedy themes, structure, chorus
•The chorus wore masks and commented on the events of the plays.
•They qere meant to represent the audience and plave them at the heart of the events.
• Themes included relations within families, humans and gods, individuals and the stae and suffering.
•Tragedies tended to be based on mythological stories which meant the people qere familiar with them.
•Only one historical play survives, Aeschylus’ Persians, which shows that it qasnt a popular genre.
•Only one satyr-play survuves today, which shiws it wasnr a main part of the plays.
•There were only 2 or later 3 actors on stage so masks were worn to represent different characters.
Euripides’ Hippolytus
•Aphrodite wants revenge on Hippolytus for having jo interest in sex or love.
•She makes his step mother fall in love with him.
•Phaedra commits suicide and Theseus exiles and cirsed Hippolytus who is killed by Posiedons bull.
•One first prize in city duonysia in 428.
•Questions the relationship between gods and humans, and can humans be free to make their own decisi9ns.
•The fact that Hippolytus was chnaged when ut was too shocking shies hiw comoetative playwrites were.
Comedy structure, themes, etc.
•Lenaea dedicated to comedy in late qinter before sailing season so outsiders wouldnt see political figured movked.
•ARISTOPHANES KNIGHTS shows cleons currypt ways exposed, comedy reinforces the idea of free speech and that the politicians ultimatly answer to the prople.
•4 actirs allowed on stage, and chorus had 24 members and would soemtimes adress the crown direvtly.
•Would wear masks and phalluses and padding so they coulf fall on stage.
•A parabasis qas the chorus leader addressing the chorus direvtly, such as in the Thesmaphoruazusae when women were lsitung their issues.
•PLITARCH PERICLES
