Greek Drama and Theatre History

Greek Drama

• Athens: 'polis' = City-State, known for art, literature, and democracy
• Peisistratus dominated Athens (560-510 BCE) and promoted art, establishing/enlarging festivals like City Dionysia, a major home of drama

Dithyramb

• A form of dance and song, performed by a chorus of 50 men, highly stylized and rhythmic
• Celebrated Dionysus, god of fertility and wine
• Led to the development of drama
• Thespis, considered the first actor, left the chorus to take on the role of "the god" in City Dionysia (534 BCE)

City Dionysia Festival

• Celebrated for 7 days (late March to early April)
• Day 1: Procession of Dionysus' statue from its temple to the theatre
• Day 2: Dithyramb competition (10 chorus)
• Day 3: Comic contest (introduced in 487 BCE, 5 poets, 1 play each)
• Day 4-6: Play competition (3 tragedies + 1 satyr play each morning, 1 comedy late afternoon)
• Day 7: Closing ceremony and prize-giving

Theatrical Devices

• Ekkyklema (or Eccyclema): a wheeled platform revealing a tableau of off-stage action
• Deux ex Machina (floating machine): a crane to show characters in flight or above the earth

Famous Playwrights

• Aeschylus (525-426 BCE): wrote 70-90 plays, won 13 times 1st place, reduced chorus from 50 to 12, introduced second actor
• Sophocles (496-406 BCE): wrote 100-200 plays, won 24 times 1st place, increased chorus size to 15, introduced third actor
• Euripides (484-c. 406 BCE): wrote 90 plays, won 4 times 1st place, won again posthumously

Aristotle and Tragedy

• Wrote "Poetics" (critique of plays, including tragedy)
• Defined tragedy as an imitation of an action that is serious, complete, and of certain magnitude
• Aim of tragedy is to bring about 'Catharsis' (purification) of the spectator through pity and fear

Oedipus of King

• Written by Sophocles in 430-428 BCE
• Story: Oedipus, a king, unknowingly kills his father and marries his mother
• Structure: Prologue, Parodos, Episode, Stasimon, Exodos
• 6 main elements of tragedy: Plot, Character, Thought, Diction, Song, Spectacle

Roman Comedy

• Originated from Greek New Comedy
• Developed during the Hellenistic period (336-c.31 BCE)
• Focus on domestic issues, love affairs, and stock characters (old man, young man, slaves, parasite, braggart soldier)
• Famous playwrights: Plautus (254-184 BCE), wrote over 100 plays, 45 considered authentic, 20 survived

Decline of Roman Theatre

• Decline due to rise of Christianity and Roman Empire's power
• Theodosius made Christianity the official religion in 393, leading to persecution of other religions and decline of theatre### Decline of Religious Theatre
• 16th century: Weakening of the Church
• 1559: Elizabeth I (Anglican Church) bans religious drama
• Secular qualities of religious drama overwhelm the religious material

Noh and its Origin

• Noh theatre originated from:
  • Dengaku (rustic dances and songs from Korea)
  • Sarugaku (diverse acts)
• Perfected by:
  • Kanami Kiyotsugu
  • Zeami Motokiyo (son)
• 250 plays written by Zeami Motokiyo
• Key concepts:
  • Yugen (profound, mysterious sense of the beauty of the world)
  • Hana (fleeting beauty)
  • Riken no ken (the beauty of impermanence)

Features of Noh Theatre

• Influenced by Zen Buddhism
• Protagonists often ghosts, demons, or troubled humans
• Stories taken from literary or historical sources
• Plays divided into two parts
• Performers:
  • Actors (trained from early ages)
  • Chorus or Jiutaikata (6-10 members, sing/recite lines, narrate events)
  • Musicians or Hayashikata (2-3 drummers, 1 flute player)
• Types of Noh drama:
  1. God Plays
  2. Warrior Plays
  3. Women Plays
  4. Madness Plays
  5. Demon Plays

Kyogen

• No specific costume or masks
• Originated from comic elements in Noh
• Developed as an independent drama
• 5 types of masks:
  1. Okina
  2. Aged
  3. Male
  4. Female
  5. Demons
• No mask assigned to a particular character
• Noh masks control the rank of Noh drama

The Noh Stage

• Components:
  • Kagami-no-ma
  • Agemaku
  • Hashigakari
  • Ato-za
  • Kagami-ita
  • Kizahashi
  • Gazing pillar (Metsuke Bashira) / Sumi-bashir
  • Fue-bashira
  • Waki-bashira
  • Sumi-bashira
  • Shite-bashira
  • Kyogen-bashira
  • Koken-bashira
  • Arashi-mado

Kabuki

• Origin:
  • Okuni's dance in the Kamo river bed (1603)
  • Women's Kabuki (Onna Kabuki)
  • Banned in 1629
  • Young Men's Kabuki started
  • Banned in 1652
  • Only permits mature men to perform (Men's Kabuki)
• Genroku Kabuki (1675-1750):
  • Most characteristic features matured
  • Chikamatsu Monzaemon began writing for Kabuki theatre
• Classifications of plays:
  1. Jidai-mono (history plays)
  2. Sewa-mono (domestic plays)
  3. Dance play
  4. Aragoto (rough style)
  5. Wagoto (gentle style)

Bunraku (Puppet Theatre)

• Origin:
  • Developed from the art of chanting with biwa in the medieval period
  • Puppetry added to chanting performance (1600)
• 3 people manipulate the puppets
• Major puppets developed to have movable fingers and eyes
• Bunraku Stage Convention:
  • A narrator tells the story, expresses the feeling of the puppet, and speaks the dialogue
  • Seated stage left on a platform with the musician

Chikamatsu Monzaemon

• Wrote for Kabuki theatre and many puppet plays
• Explored problems of the middle and lower class
• Double Suicide at Sonezaki (Sonezaki Shinju)

Renaissance Italy

• Revived interest in humanist ideals of the classical world
• As merchants became wealthy, they became patrons of arts
• Great inventions and discoveries:
  • Perspective
  • Printing
  • Telescope

Theatre in Italian Renaissance

• Major innovations in 3 areas of theatre arts:
  1. Dramatic criticism (Neoclassical rules)
  2. Italian Intermezzi → Opera
  3. Professional Acting Troupes → Commedia dell'arte
• Italian Dramatic Criticism:
  • Neoclassical Rules (unity of time, place, action, etc.)
• From Intermezzi to Opera:
  • Intermezzi (elaborate complements) suggested parallels between mythological figures and honored individuals

Renaissance England

• Elizabethan Theatre:
  • The term "Renaissance Theatre" includes both Jacobean and Caroline theatre
  • Main stage of English Renaissance Theatre
• Early Renaissance developments:
  1. School Drama Trend
  2. The trend carried to London's Inns of Court
• Dramatic exploration of the "University Wits"
• Christopher Marlowe:
  • The most influential of the University Wits
  • His dramas (especially powerful dramatic verse)
  • Doctor Faustus
• Elizabethan Drama:
  • With both Roman and Medieval influences
  • Episodic structure
• Shakespeare:
  • Fused elements into one of the most unique bodies of drama
  • Life:
    • Born in Stratford-On-Avon
    • Dropped out of school at 13
    • Married to Anne Hathaway
    • Appeared on the London theatre scene as an actor and playwright
• Acting companies:
  • Sponsored by a nobleman
  • Licensed by the Master of Revels
• Theatres:
  • Private (indoor) Theatre
  • Public (outdoor) Theatre
  • Characteristics:
    • Open air theatre
    • Polygonal shaped
    • Capacity: 2000-3000
    • Apron Stage
    • Tiring house
    • Grounding (the yard)

Renaissance Theatre England (Continued)

• Episodic Drama and Neutral Drama:
  • Elizabethan Drama / Episodic Drama
  • Neutral Stage
• James I:
  • Divine Rights of Kings
  • The Court Masque
• Charles I and Masque:
  • His wife, Henrietta Maria, appeared in a masque
  • Puritan reaction increased against extravagance
• Inigo Jones:
  • Architect
  • Designer for court masques
  • Brought Italian innovations in scene design to England
• Puritan Revolution / English Civil War:
  • 1642: Theatres closed
  • 1649: Charles I executed### Neoclassical Drama
• Le Cid by Pierre Corneille (1636)
  • Based on a Spanish play, "The Youthful Adventures of the Cid"
  • Caused controversy over its compliance with Neoclassical rules
  • 5 acts, 24 hours, 4 locations in a single town
• Phaedra by Jean Racine (1677)
  • Based on Euripides' Hippolytus
  • Established a model of Neoclassical drama
  • All events occur outside a room in Theseus's palace, covering only a few hours

Characteristics of Neoclassical Drama

• Tragedy
  • Features rulers or nobility as characters
  • Plot revolves around affairs of state or personal inclination
  • Unhappy ending
  • Poetic dialogue
• Comedy
  • Features middle and lower class characters
  • Plot revolves around domestic affairs (love stories)
  • Happy ending
  • Prose/ordinary speech dialogue

Moliere's Contributions

• Tartuffe (1664)
  • Pokes fun at the failings of the upper class
  • Moliere's comedy critiques the established Christian Church
  • Performing arts during the reign of King Louis XIV
• Moliere's life
  • Son of a furniture maker
  • Dropped out of law school, started the Illustre Theatre (went bankrupt)
  • 13 years of provincial touring
  • Became patronized by King Louis XIV in 1658
  • His troupe became the King's Men in 1665

Theatres of Neoclassical France

• Comedie Francaise
  • First government-supported National Theatre in the world (1680)
  • King Louis XIV granted a monopoly
  • Originally a converted tennis court (common for many French theatres)
  • Unique features: proscenium-arch stage, horsehoe-shaped auditorium, and audience on stage

English Restoration Theatre

• 1660
  • Charles II returns to England
  • Italian Renaissance practices are reinforced by England's contact with Neoclassical France
  • Magical devices of proscenium arch theatre become part of English stage
• Comedy of Manners
  • Focus on fashion, manner, and human failings of the upper class
  • Influenced by Moliere
  • Stock characters with names describing their personality traits
  • Witty language with sexually suggestive references

Melodrama and Realism

• Rise of Melodrama (18th-19th century)
  • Emphasis on sentimentality and morality in drama
  • Star performer glorified
  • Emergence of early director
  • Acting: bombastic/declamatory
• Realism ( late 19th-early 20th century)
  • Focus on everyday life
  • Characters behave/speak/dress like ordinary people
  • No taboo subjects
  • Complexity of life, no simple moral judgments
  • No happy ending
  • Depiction of heredity and environment influences

Ibsen and Naturalism

• Ibsen (1828-1906)
  • Founder of Realism
  • Themes: social problems and human relationships
  • Realistic social dramas
  • A Doll's House (1879)
    • Social play/thesis play
    • Ordinary family with complex personalities
    • Nora's disillusionment and departure
• Naturalism
  • Extreme form of Realism
  • Focus on lower-class people and environment
  • "Slice of life" presented on stage
  • Influence of Positivism and scientific method

Moscow Art Theatre and Chekhov

• Moscow Art Theatre (1898)
  • Most influential of late 19th-century theatres dedicated to Realism
  • Organized by Konstantin Stanislavski
  • Professional acting company for realistic drama
• Chekhov (1860-1904)
  • The Cherry Orchard (1904)
    • Tragicomedy
    • Often tragedy underneath comedy
  • Stanislavski's System
    • Actor must have trained body and voice, know stage technique, and be skilled observers of life
    • Analysis of script, emotional involvement, and concentration on character
    • Continuous work and self-reflection

Non-Realistic Theatre

• Expressionism (1905-1910)
  • Focus on inner emotions and thoughts
  • Unconventional stage settings and lighting
  • Examples: Eugene O'Neill's Hairy Ape (1922)
• Epic Theatre (Bertolt Brecht)
  • Goal: to educate and provoke critical thinking
  • Means: Verfremdungseffekt (alienation/distancing), historicization, and intellectual climate
  • Examples: Mother Courage and Her Children (1939)

Noh Theatre

• There are five types of Noh plays: God plays, Warrior plays, Women plays, Madness plays, and Demon plays.
• In Noh, the shite (main character) plays different roles depending on the type of play.
• Kyogen is a comic elements in Noh, originally used as short farcical interludes.
• There are five types of masks used in Noh, and the shite decides which mask to use for the drama.
• Noh masks are important tools for spiritual transformation and are not assigned to a particular character.
• The Noh stage has various components, including the Kagami-no-ma, Agemaku, Hashigakari, Ato-za, Kagami-ita, Kizahashi, and several pillars.

History of Noh and Kabuki

• In 1603, the shogun Ieyasu unified the country, marking the beginning of the Tokugawa period (1603-1868).
• Before the Tokugawa period, the Genroku Period (1688-1703) emerged as a time of popular entertainment.
• During this time, Noh evolved into a high art for aristocratic society, while popular entertainments like doll theatre (Bunraku) and Kabuki thrived.
• The Genroku Period was characterized by a merchant-centred culture, and popular performances mirrored the commoners' lives.

Origin of Noh

• Noh originated from a combination of Gagaku (court performance) and Sangaku (public performance art).
• Sangaku, meaning "scattered music," was popular in the Heian era (794-1185) and comprised various acts like juggling, acrobatics, and rope-dancing.
• Dengaku and Sarugaku paved the way for Noh theatre.
• Zeami Motokiyo, a great Noh dramatist, wrote over 100 plays and developed the concept of "yugen."
• Features of Noh theatre include Zen Buddhism influence, stories taken from literary or historical sources, and plays divided into two parts.

Performers and Features of Noh

• Performers in Noh include:
  • Shite (main character)
  • Waki (supporting character)
  • Tsure (accompanying role)
  • Kyogen (minor characters)
  • Kokata (performed by children)
• The chorus, consisting of 6-10 members, sings and narrates events.
• Musicians include 2-3 drummers and a flute player.
• Types of Noh drama include God plays, Warrior plays, Women plays, Madness plays, and Demon plays.

Kabuki

• Kabuki originated from the dance of Okuni in 1603, and its name comes from "kabuku," meaning "to be slanted" or "to be dressed unorthodoxly."
• Women's Kabuki was banned in 1629, and Young Men's Kabuki emerged, becoming popular before being banned in 1652.
• Only mature men playing all parts were permitted in Men's Kabuki.
• Genroku Kabuki (1675-1750) matured and completed its characteristic features.
• Chikamatsu Monzaemon wrote for Kabuki theatre and explored problems of the middle and lower classes.
• Classifications of Kabuki plays include Jidai-mono (history plays), such as Chushingura, which is based on a real incident and set in the 14th century.

Test your knowledge of ancient Greek drama, its origins, and its role in Athenian society. Learn about Peisistratus, the City Dionysia, and the significance of dithyramb in theatre history.