Transcript A Brief History of Theatre

A BRIEF HISTORY OF THEATRE
THE EARLIEST FORM OF THEATRE RECORDED

Historians found that Ancient Egyptians
performed a three-day pageant
(performance) about four thousand years
ago

The pageant explained the story of Osiris,
an Egyptian god

The pageant included actual battles
where “actors” were killed (slaves made
up most of the cast)

This is the first recorded theatrical
event
Osiris
GREEK THEATRE
Started as a religious ritual that
honored the God, Dionysus (there
was lots of chanting and singing
involved)
 Dionysus came down from the sky
during a ritual chant, and pulled
Thespis on stage for dialogue.
Thespis = first actor
 Dramatic festivals were created,
and they employed intellectuals to
become playwrights

GREEK THEATRE
A skene was the term for the small building at
the end of the stage that was used by actors for
changing costumes
 A machina was the pulley system invented to fly
the character playing a god onto the stage
 The Greeks built stone seats into the hillside so
that the audience could see better

ROMAN THEATRE
The Romans got away
from having theatre tied
to religion
 Took entertainment to the
next level: mimes and
gladiatorial competitions
 There were still plays
written however they were
read, not performed

ROMAN THEATRE

Germanic Tribes conquered
Rome

They burned the Roman’s
libraries, including all of their
plays

Theatre stayed alive through
street performers

These performers were mostly
mimes, acrobats, jugglers and
dancers
MEDIEVAL THEATRE

Theatre was revived during the
Elizabethan period in Europe

Again (just like with the Greeks),
it started as part of religious
ritual. That is why it is called the
rebirth of theatre.

The purpose was to educate the
people about stories from the
Bible

Priests and nuns performed the
stories in front of the
congregation

Soon after, the public was invited
to act in the plays
MEDIEVAL THEATRE

Pageant Wagons were built so that the mini-plays could hit the
streets

On these wagons, different sections of the play was performed, thus
creating acts in playwriting

The actors started bringing in other characters into the stories (to
create humor and depth)

The church stopped their involvement with pageant wagons because
they were expanding beyond Bible stories

Those who acted in the plays continued to perform plays, traveling in
their wagon, from town to town. These groups made up the first
theatre companies, and kept theatre alive.
THE RENAISSANCE IN ENGLAND

Theatre became a major part of the
English and French culture during the
Elizabethan Age

Playwrights were well-known,
respected men

William Shakespeare was one of the
most popular playwrights of the time

Finally, like Grecian times, plays were
written by playwrights and then
performed in front of the public
THEATRE IN ASIA
Storytelling through
theatre is an ancient
tradition in both
Japanese, and Chinese
cultures.
 Traditional theatre
practices are still alive
today, almost untouched
 The costumes, make-up
and masks are elaborate

Kabuki Theatre
JAPANESE THEATRE
Kabuki Theatre
Noh Masks
-It is a mix of dance, mime, drama and
song
-Created by a female dancer (1600) in
Japan
-Men in the audience would fight over
dating the female performers so in 1629
females were banned from performing
Kabuki (only men could act)
Noh Theatre
Noh Set
-Created in the 1300s
-Same set for every play
-All actors wear masks
-5 Masks Used: gods, men, women,
madmen and demons
-Actors have a ten year apprenticeship
before they are allowed to act on stage
CHINESE OPERA
-Created in 700 BC
-Mix of mime, drama,
music, and acrobatics
-Make-up covers their
entire face
-Costumes are very,
very detailed
-Actors often fly
around the stage (the
movie Crouching Tiger,
Hidden Dragon has
the feel of Chinese
Opera
ASPECTS OF OLD THEATRE STILL FELT TODAY…
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Thespis (Greek): We now have the term thespian, which means actor
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Stadium Seating (Greek): Audience seats were built into a hillside so that they could see better
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Gladiatorial Competition(Roman): A modern-day gladiatorial competition would be football
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Street Performers (Roman): After Rome was conquered, theatre remained alive through
performances on the streets
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Floats and Parades: Structures on wagons can now be seen during parades, like homecoming. They
no longer have plays performed on them, but the still are decorated and wheeled through town
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Acts (Medieval): Sections of plays were performed on wagons, thus creating acts in playwriting

Theatre Companies (Medieval): Groups of performers that stick together, performing several plays
using the same group for every performance

Japanime (Asian Theatre): The characters facial expression in Japanese cartoons are modeled after
traditional Japanese acting.
Style for Filming Action Movies (China): Actors often flew around stage during fighting scenes
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