Around 753 B.C.E., Rome was founded under the rule of the Etruscans, an empire thriving in ancient Italy. During its early beginnings, the Italian-based empire was functioning under the rule of a monarchy. This form of hereditary-based governmental ruling was preserved by the Romans for about two centuries. Circa 509 B.C.E., the Etruscan king of Rome, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, was relieved of his duties, therefore placing the governmental power into the hands of the people. This mentality of “power in the hands of the people” lead to the birth of the Roman Republic. Around 300 years after the creation of the Roman Republic, the theatrical arts were founded as a form of ritual, as well as entertainment. Alongside this Etruscan-based empire was that of the Greeks. Ancient Greece, which was said to be established around 12th Century B.C.E., started off in a time period known as the “Greek Dark Ages”. In terms of chronology, this was one of the earlier periods in development, commonly identified by its pottery. Around 7th century B.C.E., the Greeks found themselves in a period of theatrical advancements. These two legendary empires found a way to portray mental concepts through physical and vocal exemplification by means of dramaturgy.
Starting around 700B.C.E., drama became a significant piece of the Greek culture. In terms of Greek cultural aspects, Athens was the center of attention. Athens held great significance to aspects of politics, military and government in the ancient day. During this era, Athens became included as the main location of a festival in honor of Dionysus. This festival was known as Dionysia. In this setting, theater was given a platform to step off of, as well as a public image. Athens would pass this drama form through all of Greece to create a unique and distinct cultural identity.
As time went on, the Greeks evolved this drama into two different genres to receive different emotional responses for each, one of these genres being tragedy. Tragedy was a distinct form of drama, in which the playwright wants the audience to have a deeply emotional response. One of the first men thought to have adopted this form of drama was Thespis. Thespis was the first recorded Greek actor. He conducted beautiful displays of tragedy in his time, which lead to the creation of his nickname, “The Father of Tragedy”. With this being said, a strong argument can be held up against this nickname. The reason being, there were 16 Greek tragedians that are commonly placed before him chronologically. One of these 16 tragedians was Homer, who constructed many famous epics performed by rhapsodes which were people that perform and recite poems.
The Athenians held much pride in their works of tragedy. The Greek tragedians often competed in competition to prove theatrical dominance over others. These competitions held in Dionysia were created around 508B.C.E. Although modern day historians have not been able to identify or find any written works of these tragedians, they are still given credit for their ample contributions to the art of theater and drama, specifically tragedy.
For a long time, Greek tragedy was a written form of work only meant to be played once. All the works at this time were created to honor Dionysus, with no other purpose at all. However, once the Hellenistic period came about, the course of tragedy changed for good. Tragedy became a band of widespread topics that all relate back to the idea of a deeply emotional response.
Second in creation to tragedy was comedy. After the Peloponnesian War, Athens faced a great decline in power and significance. This lead to the Spartans adapting the old tragic traditions of the Athenian people. However, theater did not stop after facing this cultural road block. Instead, it evolved into a new genre made to give the audience a different emotional response. In comedy, the playwright uses comic devices, like irony, to make the audience laugh and feel a sort of comic relief. In the ancient times, comedy was known strictly as “New Comedy”. This genre of drama had an especially large impact on the Roman theater, because like tragedy, the Romans also adopted this form of drama from the Greeks.
Following the newfound creation of the Roman republic, as well as the creation of Greek drama, the Roman civilization was hit by “the plague”. This plague caused a multitude of casualties that appealed to the mortality of the survivors. In response to this fear, the Romans sought out to the gods and goddesses for assistance. The men and women of the Republic would perform Lectisternium ceremonies, where they showed their love and praise to the gods through feast and prayer. Following the creation of these ceremonies, the Romans developed various dances and games they performed to music by acting out a script, much like the Greeks.
As the theater and drama of Rome progressed, it began to be included in public display. The works of art were performed professionally in front of many bystanders. The works of playwrights like Livius Andronicus would commonly be acted out in large gatherings to honor and send praise to the gods. This man was the first to translate Greek plays to give the Romans the ability to act them out. One of the offerings that held much importance in the Roman culture was known as Ludi Romani. This offering was set to honor the king of the gods, Jupiter, whose Greek equivalent is Zeus of Mount Olympus. These offerings proceeded to set the stage for Roman theater and drama, as well as giving it a platform for take-off.
Following the development of theater in Rome, the Roman people expanded and constructed complex pieces, using the Greek culture as a reference. The reason being, the Romans and the Greeks were constantly in contact, whether it be through battle or trade. This exposure of culture between the two civilizations aided the Romans in developing an interest in the Greek way of theater. This exposure was greatly expanded upon, when the Macedonian war came to a conclusion, giving the Romans the opportunity to expand upon their knowledge and style of theater and the arts. Following the Macedonian war, there was an ample amount of Greeks living in Rome, therefore exposing the Romans to their form of culture and theater.
Eventually, theater in Rome was taking off once again. The Greeks helped the Romans advance in the theatrical categories, however the Romans did not completely switch over to the way of the Greeks. Instead, the Romans continued to bind to their Etruscan roots, while using their native language of Latin, as well as including some Greek traditions.
Following this adaptation to the Greek culture, the Romans developed two different genres of theater consisting of tragedy and comedy. Although there is no written record or examples of early Ancient Roman Tragedy today, historians were still able to identify multiple tragedians consisting of Ennius, Pacuvius and Lucius Accius. These three men would use chorus and music to increase the intensity of the tragedy-based performance. Chorus and music were large aspects that indirectly characterize Roman Tragedy. Although there is no record of early Roman Tragedy, historians are still able to identify the works of two Roman tragedians in the time of the empire, one of which is unknown. The author that can be identified is none other than the philosopher Seneca. To this day, nine of Seneca’s tragedies a have survived. This philosopher created works that held a tight bond to the genre of tragedy, consisting of large amounts of death, violence and horror. Although we do not have large amount of resources when it comes to Roman Tragedy, we do know it consisted of violence and horror and it was easily identified by its supply of chorus and song.
Much like the Greeks, the much less serious topic in the theater of Roman theater was comedy. Much like tragedy, the work comedy has an equivalent meaning today as it did in the ancient world. Comedy in the ancient world, as well as in the modern world, was considered contradicting to tragedy. The two categories are equal opposites. While tragedy is meant to give the viewer a deep and heartfelt emotional response, comedy was meant to make the audience laugh and feel relief. To promote the change in mood of the two genres, the Romans exterminated chorus when transitioning to comedy. The Roman Comedies that have recently survived are works by Terrence. Terrence combined many Greek plays to create his works. He would receive much hate and slur, as rumor had it that he was receiving help from high ranking men while creating his material. Due to this criticism, Terrence would take advantage of his prologues to ask for the audience’s eye and ear and to ignore all the negativity that they have heard outside of his theater. This was his attempt to gain the trust and belief of the audience, so they could focus on the art as opposed to negative opinion. With the exclusion of the Terrence scandal, comedy was considered a way for the audience to let loose while giving the playwrights the opportunity to criticize and make fun of life’s important people and events.
As a whole, theater in the ancient world was one of the most important aspect of culture. A civilization’s take of theater can stand alone to characterize the type of culture to which that civilization holds. Theater in the ancient world was most commonly used as a tribute to the gods through ritual and a way of celebration, as well as a form of general entertainment. Although the Greeks were the first to discover the different aspects of theater and drama, the Romans were able to expand on this rapidly developing vocal and visual portrayal. Theater and the arts would not be what they are today if it was not for the people of the ancient Greek and Roman cultures.