Types Of The Middle Theater : FAQ About Medieval Theater

During the 5th century, only men were able to participate and act in plays. Greek and Medieval Theatre both did play during special occasions. Greek and Medieval Theatre had playwrights, themes, actors, produced worldwide theatre, both were located in a type of amphitheater, costume, staging, and a type of genre. Both had their first play during the 5th century. Greek Theatre has a lot to do with Greek mythology, like god and goddesses as well mystical heroes. The Medieval Theatre presented epic hero sometimes dealing with demigods and normal people that challenged the gods. It also portrays to Marcuity plays.

Shakespeare's most famous works include: Taming of the Shrew, Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer-night's dream, Julius Ceaser, Othello, King Lear, and the list goes on and on and on. Not only did Shakespeare write plays, he also invented over 1700 words, some that are still used today. Shakespeare was known for his dark comedies. Shakespeare wrote up to 37 plays and 154 sonnets. Shakespeare also acted in his plays and performed for Queen Elizabeth 1.

These shaped the way these immaculate plays were executed. The theater was always set up using a very specific format. The plays that were performed, usually only during late Winter and early Spring, always took place in an open air theater that was built into the side of a hill. These theaters could seat up to 15,000 people, (“A Trip to the Theatre”). The seats were set up along the hillside in an arrangement called the theatron, (“Structure of the Greek Theater”).

William Shakespeare wrote plays that covered the breadth of human experience, which seem to have transcended the restraints of age because they contain universal themes. His body of his work is comprised of genres of plays, which varied from tragedies to comedies.

All of Shakespeare plays were not very popular in that period of time like they are now and it’s amazing because most things they did we thought were weird and it flips during our age. It states on the Elizabethanera.org that the history of the theater is fascinating. How plays were first produced in the yards of inns - the Inn-yards, the very first theater and development of the amphitheater. The

Julius Caesar William Shakespeare is well-known for his plays and poems. He is studied all over the world. He has written approximately 37 plays and about 154 sonnets. One of his most famous works was Julius Caesar. He may have taken ideas for the play out of real historical events.

Christian Influence on the Theatre in Medieval Times While the time during Medieval Europe is widely regarded as “The Dark Ages,” this time still saw a lot of advancement in the theatre. Theatre during this period initially erupted out of rules and regulations set by church doctrine. The church saw a utilitarian aspect of the theatre, and began to implement aspects of theatricality in their church services, drawing in the attention of all who attended the service. Out of necessity to reach out to as many people as possible with the word of God, especially the illiterate, liturgical drama, the beginning mark of medieval drama, was created to draw in church-goers.

Ancient theaters in Athens were set up a lot like how today’s modern theaters are set up. They included an orchestra, a main floor that the actor’s presented themselves on and the theatron which was the building that the play’s were held on.iv However the spectator’s were not inside a building like today’s are, they viewed from the outside. The building that the actors were sometimes under was just  covering themselves. However it is thought that the stage was often rebuilt for different plays. This is because the remains of ancient Greek theaters are hard to come by because they were not made to last due to

After the fall of the Roman Empire, small nomadic bands travelled around performing wherever there was an audience. They consisted of storytellers, jesters, jugglers and many other performers. Later, festivals cropped up where entertainers would show their talents. However, the powerful Catholic Church made headway during the Middle Ages to stamp out such performances and convert the entertainers. Despite its insistence that acting and travelling performances were sinful; the Church was actually instrumental in reviving theatre in the Middle Ages. In one type of church service, called The Hours, Bible stories were dramatized. Music often would be incorporated into the dramatizations. The very first written-down liturgical drama or play is known

     Once plays started being written, the number of interested spectators increased. In order to satisfy the Greeks amphitheaters were constructed all over Greece. Three well-known theaters were the theater at Delphi, the Attic Theater and the theater of Dionysus built at the foot of the Acropolis in Athens. During their prime time, the plays attracted crowds of 30,000 and more. The stands were built around the orchestra and up hillsides; somewhat like a baseball stadium today. This made it possible to seat more than 17,000 spectators at a time.

Many plays were performed outdoors during the spring and summer months. Cycle plays also became popular. The cycle plays were composed of many short plays or episodes and could or could not be religious. Cycle plays could take a few hours or 25 or more days to perform. The cycle plays varied but usually all dealt with religious figures, biblical writings of the church and sermons of the church. The plays had little sense of chronology, and most of their authors were anonymous. Around the end of the 14th century the church was controlling less and less of the production of plays, but it always kept an eye on the contents of plays and their presentation. Sometimes towns would put on shows, but often individuals would arrange a production. The

Medieval Theatre was a source of education and reflection for the residents of the Middle Ages. Serving as an inspiration for Renaissance plays, it took centuries of evolution for Medieval to accommodate themes outside of the Bible. Theatre in the Middle Ages was an enemy of the Catholic Church, who tried to terminate these performances. Unusually, the Catholic Church played a significant role in the development of Medieval Theatre. Although plays were limited to the themes of the Bible for a long period of time, bizarre masks, costumes and great structuring of stages were used.

A. The plays that Shakespeare wrote were “Hamlet”, “Macbeth”, “Romeo & Juliet”, “Twelfth night”, “King Lear” and more.

     The third distinct part of the theater was the skene (scene building). "The earliest scene buildings were very simple wooden structures " (Butler 31). " Originally, the skene was a dressing room; later it is believed to have borne a painted backdrop" (Kennedy 1102). This area was known as the actors place. It was intended to provide a background against which actors could perform. "In Greek theater as we know it, the skene appears as a appendage, adjunct, breaking the perfect circularity of the design" (Arnott 13).

The theater gained popularity based on the plays they would have showing. In most cases the plays would consist of humor, tragedy, or histories. Shakespeare was one of the most popular playwrights at this time, and many of his plays were performed in the Elizabethan theater. Among him were some other famous play writers,