Ancient Greek Entertainment

Theatre  represented  a  culture  and  values  found  in  Greek  society.  Theatre  was  also  a  way  for

Also, the festivals were often aided in funding by rich roman sponsors. Viewing competitions were a key role in the lives of the citizens and was a huge source of entertainment for their subtle lives. Hellenic citizens of Greece cherished the sports and were some of the most loyal spectators. It is said Greeks were indebted to Crete for their athletic system and their athletic festivals. Another reason spectating was so prevalent was that every match had a guarantee of each participant trying their hardest and possibly some blood being shed.

In ancient Greece festivals were mainly held at the Great Dionysia. This was the oldest theatre in Greece and many plays were performed here for example the first performance of Antigone. The patron of the theatre was the God

Ancient Greek Theater is the first historical record of “drama,” which is the Greek term meaning “to do” or “to act.” Beginning in the 5th century BC, Greek Theater developed into an art that is still used today. During the golden age of the Athenians plays were created, plays that are considered among the greatest works of world drama. Today there are thousands of well-known plays and films based on the re-make of ancient drama.

Ancient Greek culture has influenced our modern culture in many ways from philosophy to medicine to government. We still use many of their concepts, technology, and even alphabet system. Without ancient Greece, our modern world would not have advanced as far. A significant contribution of the ancient Greek culture to the world today is the Greek theater, more specifically the structure of tragedy. Some contributions are the structure of tragedy in modern literature, rise of opera, and the creation of the theater.

Stephen G. Miller, an expert Yale professor in the field of Ancient Greek athletics states that the Olympics were held “in honor of Zeus in the city of Olympia” (Miller). “The element of religion is evident in this historical event. Many people have heard of the concepts of the Greek Gods, but this level of religious involvement is interesting. These games were held “for four days every fourth summer”, a tradition that partially continues to this day (Miller). “Many festivals in ancient Greece were dedicated to the Gods” (Miller). In addition to the Olympic Games, there were also other athletic festivals which included the Pythian Games at Delphi, the Isthmian at Corinth, and the Nemean at Argos (Miller). However, the Olympics at Olympia were “the oldest and most prestigious of the four great ancient Greek athletic festivals.

In terms of the arts, Greece is unprecedented to many cultures. These people made an immense impact on our forms of entertainment. Ancient Greek theatre, without a shout of a doubt, helped mold the future for television and movies through their comedic criticisms and dramatic

Theater in ancient Greece was considered the climax of the days long cultural festival of The City Dionysia. At the festival, various types of plays were shown but one of the most popular was tragedy. These tragedies show the main character, usually a god or person of myth, going through human suffering and the terrible sequence of events that followed; and were produced in 472- 401 BCE. In order for a play to be performed at The City Dionysia festival; tragic playwrights would first have to appeal to the state official that was organizing the festival by submitting ideas to him and his committee. The ideas submitted were outlines of main themes and points of interest to be performed in the play. If a playwright was selected by the state official and his committee, then they received a financial backer and a chance to compete in the drama competition of the festival. The state official, or his committee, was likely pushing their own agenda and choose playwrights that matched their ideals. This is just one example of how theater in ancient Greece was used to influence the morality of Greek culture by using the stories of tragedies, like those of Euripides.

Ancient Greece created the foundation of theatre that has grown to what is known today. In the sixth century when theatre became popular, there was the discovery of the tragedy, comedy, and a satire play called a satyr play. The plays were put on in festivals to celebrate the god Dionysus, the god of wine. Elements such as costumes and masks that were used in worship rituals to the gods influenced their costuming for the shows. There were three innovative playwrights Aeschylus, Aristophanes, and Sophocles who all had their own writing styles and contributed to the advancement of theatre in their own way.

Greece is the protégé of theatre and in turn stands as the basis of Western theatrical tradition; as a large part of the broader culture of theatricality and performance. In classical Greece included festivals, religious rituals, politics, law, athletics and gymnastics, music, poetry, weddings, funerals, and symposiums. In the original culture of the Greek theatre they stressed the importance of the twelve Olympian gods, advanced technology, theatrical stage, first actor, and rise of different genres. Due to these ideals and stresses, Greek style theatre is still prevalent today; we are very privileged to see the growth theater had since it first started out and to see that the old ways still persist today.

The Ancient Olympic Games took place during a time of prosperity for the nation of Greece. In fact, they contributed to the success of the Greek Empire. The Olympic Games reinforced the power of ancient rulers, brought peace with the surrounding nations, and created a reliable way to track time. These ancient games have had such an influence, that they are still continued in our modern society.

Theatre became important to Greek cultures when it became a part of the festival honoring the god Dionysus (The god of wine and fertility).”( Greek Mythology in Theater by Bruce Tucker October 27, 2016) The theater festival was founded to bring unity among the Attican tribes.( Greek Mythology in Theater by Bruce Tucker October 27, 2016) Athens was the main center of these traditions. Everyone came to sing and dance in hope for a good harvest. At one point, a Greek named Thespis began to sing praises to the god, with others responding, which led to the actor and chorus. During the festival everyone would dance and sing in a circle, in the middle of which was the altar to Dionysus. Over time the festivals started giving thanks to other themes, and eventually had nothing to do with Dionysus or any god, but began to turn into classical Greek plays. (First Ancient History, Oxford University Press 2000 pg.166)

Greek athletics were very popular in the Greek culture. William Baker’s thesis statement was ”For more than a thousand years athletic festivals were an important part of Greek life. Originally mixtures of religious ceremony and athletic competition, hundreds of local festivals were held each year throughout the country and in Greek colonies in Egypt, Sicily, and the banks of the Bosporus.“The argument is how festivals are important to Greek Life. The article starts out with the author talking about the four major athletic festivals, The Pythian Games, The Isthmian Games, The Nemean Games, and the Olympic Games. “By the fifth century B.C. four major festivals dominated the scene, forming a kind of circuit ambitious athletes” “Ambitious” athletes could gain a following in an event by training for and participating in these events creating a circuit for them.

Greece was the first culture to significantly raise the standards not only for philosophical ideals, mathematical methods & astronomical allegories, architectural influence, medical techniques, and much more, but also ultimately, the most substantial contribution they charted was theater pioneering. What was considered theatre back in ancient times is completely unrecognizable to what we are used to theater nowadays.

Back in ancient greece plays started out as a tribute honoring greece gods, a god named Dionysia. Theater back then was very different from how it is for us today. Back then only three people were allowed to perform onstage as time went on more silent acting parts were being allowed. The limit of performers at a time was a real bummer for those looking to be more involved in theater. Chous was becoming a lot more popular at the time because people were looking for an alternative to somehow be involved in theater anyway they can. Audiences and stadiums were so big at the time that in order to see an actor’s face the masks that the actors wore were very drastic. Mask making was a very clever art of its own because not only were they well designed and exaggerated, but they were also made in such a way that the masks actually projected the voice of the actors so people in the stadium could hear them. Now although this helped much the stadiums were also cleverly constructed to project the actors voice as well as gestures, also made very exaggerated so people could see.