Minoan treasures hit the bullseye
The columns are of reinforced concrete, the peeling paint, 20th century. Close by, in the “processional corridor”, we stand before the iconic relief of the Knossos “Lily Prince”, a wasp-waisted young man, whose image graces many a tourist leaflet and souvenir-shop bag. Unfortunately, we are informed, the three small fragments of original 3,500-year-old Minoan art from which he was “recreated” actually came from three different pictures.
Expert guidance as to what is original, what is reconstructed, and what is simply imagined by the famous (or infamous) excavator of Knossos, Sir Arthur Evans, is just one of the benefits of travelling with specialist archaeologists on Andante Travels’ new Crete tour: “Minoans, Greeks and Romans”. We are particularly spoilt on this trip. The 20 guests are accompanied by four staff — two archaeologists, a local guide, and a tour manager.
The other large Minoan complexes (palaces in Evans-speak) including Malia and Phaistos, are relatively untouched and are much more of a pleasure to visit. Phaistos sits in a stunning location beneath Crete’s highest mountain, Mount Ida. Its twin peaks mimic the Minoans’ sacred symbol, the “horns of consecration” (or, according to some archaeologists, an abstract mountainous horizon) — which we are soon spotting all over buildings, clay coffins (larnakes) and painted pots.
Phaistos has all the typical features of a Minoan “palace”. Here we learn (or rather, I learn; many of my fellow guests are already much more expert) to identify pier-and-door systems for flexible open plan living; the paved West Court with its step-seats and raised pathways like ancient catwalks; light wells and the huge central court flanked by shrines and storerooms of vast pithoi like Ali Baba pots.
Bearing all this in mind, I begin to be able to “read” some aspects of other sites, and to enjoy identifying similarities and differences. We visit a wide range of places, from Minoan ruins on street corners in modern-day Chania to deserted ancient cities-turned-pastoral-paradises on the hilltops above the coast.
One such is Aptera in the Western mountains. Here, with panoramic views all around, our only company is a shepherd, crook in hand. His vast shaggy sheepdog (called “Little Baby” according to our Greek-speaking guide) sleeps among the bright spring flowers while his flock grazes by fallen Graeco-Roman columns. Sheep-bells tinkle as if Pan himself must appear at any moment — but the little temple nearby is thought to have been dedicated to Artemis and Apollo.
Ancient Greek Theatres - News
Performance was as much a part of the Minoan, Greek and Roman ways of life as it is ours and at our next ancient theatre we get an impromptu performance that rolls all four time periods into one. It happens at Gortyn, a Minoan town that became Rome's
“The Man in a Case” is a frame story. It develops as frame narratives (a beginning frame and an ending frame), which envelope the story proper, that of a high school teacher of ancient Greek named Belikov. The story is told by Bourkin, a fellow teacher
Somewhere towards the middle of A Midsummer Night's Dream, which opened the outdoor season of the Shakespeare Theater of New Jersey on Saturday, stage hands illuminated all of the trees that surrounded the Greek amphitheater that is nestled into a
The Cafe Theatre production envisions the satiric fun that occurs when the wives of a bunch of corrupt politicians turn their society upside down by impersonating their husbands. The toga party goes up tonight and continues through June 19,
Ancient Greece. Mongolia. Istanbul. Its roots run deep. Today we think of puppetry as children's entertainment, but that is a relatively modern conceit. Japanese bunraku, a form of musical theater utilizing puppets, dates to the 1600s.
Ancient Greek Theatre |
The three main genres of theatre; comedy, tragedy and satyr also emerged in Athens, paving the way for theatre to come. Western theatre originated from this fascinating city and top London shows still incorporate the theatrical ideas of Greek Theatre.
A fabulous art form, many still flock to London to enjoy theatre breaks which includes tickets to one of the many fantastic London shows on offer. The ever-increasing range of technological devises mean that theatre is quite different from what it used to be, however, many of the fundamental ideas connected to theatre are the same.
So, the next time you enjoy a theatre break, sit back and think how the Greeks might have done things.
The centre point of a Greek theatre was a semi-circular space called the orchestra and this would be where the action took place. It was often built at the bottom of a hill so that the audience could see the show from a range of inclines. Theatres constructed in London are also built on different levels, so that many people can fit into a small space and enjoy London shows with ease.
A trip to the theatre wouldn’t be fun if you could not hear what was going on, so mathematics and design were crucial in creating the perfect acoustics in Greek theatre. Apparently the acoustics of ancient Greek theatres rival those in the UK today which would have been important, as they did not have the technology to amplify sound. London shows today use microphones and great sound effects, so do not have to rely on the natural acoustics of a building to be top notch. If you book a London theatre break to Sister Act or Mamma Mia! you won’t leave upset that you could not hear the songs.
In ancient Greece, the audience used to sit on the ground, before wooden seats were introduced. Eventually they began inlaying stone blocks into the hill which were called prohedria reserved for priests and respected members of the community. I guess these are the same as the boxes you see in London theatres, where people enjoy London theatre breaks in luxury.
Ancient Greek theatre used to also include a backdrop or a scenic wall. It was common for death scenes to take place behind this screen, as it was seen inappropriate to perform a death in front of the audience. Actors also used to pop behind the screen to change their costumes. A backdrop is still used in London shows today and often changes a number of times. With all the blood and guts on TV today, however, audiences would not be offended by a re-enactment of a death on stage.
Ancient Greek Theatres - Bookshelf
Theatre in ancient Greek society
In this book the author examines the social setting and function of ancient Greek theatre through the thousand years of its performing history.A short introduction to the ancient Greek theater
With observations on all aspects of performance, this volume fills their need for a clear, concise account of what is known about the original conditions of ...Classical Greek theatre, new views of an old subject
In his wide-ranging and provocative study, Clifford Ashby, a theatre historian trained in the practical processes of play production as well as the methods of ...A Greek theatre
Ancient Greek Theatre, Orchestra, Tragedy, Classical Unities, Ode, Protagonist, Strophe, Melpomene, Polyhymnia, Epode, Theorica
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Ancient Greek Theatre
Ancient greek theater : genesis of theater, its relation to dithyrambous and Dionyssos. Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes, Aeschylus : biography ...
Theatre of ancient Greece - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses of "Greek Theatre", see Greek theatre (disambiguation) ... The Theatre of Ancient Greece, or ancient Greek drama, is a theatrical culture that ...
Greek Theater
The major components of Greek theater are labled on the diagram above. ... You do not have to know ancient Greek to use this helpful resource. ...
Ancient Greek Theater
The roots of ancient Greek theater lie in the cult of Dionysus, the god of wine and fertility, one of the Olympian deities honored in the Greek world. ...
Introduction to Theatre -- Ancient Greek Theatre
Everything we think we know from the Ancient Greek theatre, and about the origins of theatre, comes from the following sources: From the 5th century B.C. ...