Daniel & Chloe

Greek TheatreDaniel & Chloe Facts about Greek TheatreThe Theatre of Ancient Greek drama, is a theatrical culture that flourished in ancient Greece 700 BC.Greek actors wore masks, that were made from stiffened linen, with holes for eyes and mouth. The actors also wore wigs. They wore thick-soled shoes too, it was to make them look taller, and they wore padded costumes to make them look fatter or stronger. The masks showed the audience what kind of character an actor was playing (sad, angry or funny). Some masks had two sides, so the actor could turn them round to suit the mood for each scene.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/primaryhistory/ancient_greeks/arts_and_theatre/

Parts of a Greek Theatre

Theatron: This is the area where the audience would sit and watch the performances. This area was usually carved out of the hillside.Orchestra: This is the acting area of the whole stage. This was a flat space in the middle of the theatre.Skene: The skene was a building behind the orchestra which housed all of the costumes and the scenery (periaktoi) was attached too. This essentially was the back stage area.Video on Greek Theatre

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Ancient Roman TheatreFacts about Roman Theatres Roman Theatres took a lot of influence structurally from the Greek Theatres however they were built upon their own foundations instead of being carved from the hillside and they also were enclosed on all sides.The Arena of a Roman Theatre was as high as the rest of the structure so the audience could not look up above the stage. This is also gave a sense of a more enclosed atmosphere and possibly keep more noise out from the city.Triangular wooden prisms with a different scene painted on each side were created and located on the stage to make for a more realistic show. These were also called periaktoi as this mechanism was taken from the Greek Theatres.http://www.crystalinks.com/rometheaters.html

Video on Roman Theatre