DRAM 115 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Dionysia, Euripides, Oresteia
Document Summary
Festival in greece once a year the city dionysia: 3 tragedies (trilogy), one satire, everyone in the city attended, theater meant to worship gods. Ceremonies, dances, initiation rites, celebrations, invocations all used costumes, music, dance, masks, performers, a stage area, and an audience. Control the forces of nature (by appealing/praying to gods) Religious, civic, dramatic arts festival honoring dionysus god of wine, fertility, agriculture. Growth of greek drama writing 5th century b. c. e. Songs called dithyrambs were sung and danced in his honor. Thespis 6th century b. c. e: first playwright, actor; enabled dramatic interaction with the chorus. Aeschylus (c. 525-456 b. c. e. : added the second actor, wrote the oresteia (the only surviving trilogy) Sophocles (c. 496-406 b. c. e. : added a third actor, aristotle hailed oedipus the king as the perfect example of tragedy, enlarged the chorus from 12 to 15, introduced some painted scenery.
