OCR Classical Civilisation A-Level Greek Theatre Revision Guide - 1.3 The Nature of (old) Comedy

The Origins and development of comedy

> emergence from worship of Dionysus

> key element of the festivals was the 'kōmos' - men came out into the streets drinking/singing/dancing

> revellers held leather phalluses aloft

> kōmoidia - literally meant 'song of the kōmos'

- as the phallus was a symbol of it too it was prominent in the plays too.

How does the Bacchae describe the kōmos?

Tiresias: "he discovered and gave to mortals a drink, the juice of the grape. It puts an end to the pain of suffering humans, when they are filled with the stream of the vine, and it gives sleep to forget the troubles of the day; there is no other cure for pain."

When was the recorded entry for a comedy at the City Dionysia?

486 BC

KEY INDIVIDUAL: Aristophanes

> c. 450-386

> Comic Playwright

> Known as the father of comedy, Aristophanes wrote 40 plays, 11 of which survive

Who are the comics we know?

Aristophanes / Cratinus: 454 - 423 / Eupolis: 429-411 - successful

Actors and Chorus

> had the same distinction between leading actors and the chorus as tragedy

> likely that comedy had 4 actors on stage speaking (disputed)

> comic chorus = 24 members

> the chorus and actors would both acknowledge the audience at times

Comic Costumes

> made to look ridiculous - element of farce

> short tunic / cloak to just below the waist / tights

> thickly padded especially around midriff and backside

- allowed him to look small and round and also allowed him to be able to fall over

> oversized leather phallus - may have been attached to a string

- source of comedy - (in 'Wasps' the old man Philocleon offers his to a music-girl as a hand-rope up onto the stage.)

> colourful and absurd - 24 different types of birds in 'Birds'

Comic Masks

> facial features were grossly exaggerated and mouths ridiculously large

> some plays satirised public figures (Cleon/Socrates/Euripides) and the masks sometimes mimicked this

What can the Krater Choregos Vase or Comic Angels Vase show us about Comic Costume and Mask?

Allows us to see a direct comparison between the serious/grand/ornate costumes of tragedy and the large/grotesque costumes of comedy.

- artist license to have them both on stage perhaps

What can the Black -figure chous depicting two chorus-members dressed as birds show us about Comic Costume and Mask?

> as it dates to 480 its helpful in showing that comic choruses were well known then

> animal choruses were popular

> comedic costume

Humour and Comic Technique

> costume/mask/props

> comedies usually have a happy ending, often involving a banquet or wedding

> included characters from Athenian life

> the audience were not usually familiar with the plot - so the prologue was usually longer

> Language of Aristophanes - scatalogical and sexual

> use of the choral odes for song and dance

> slapstick comedy

Themes and Cultural Context

> centred around Athenian society and made fun of the public figures

> 'Knights' - about Cleon

> 'Lysistrata' - after expedition to Sicily

> 'Wasps' - about jury service

> Aristophanes also enjoyed parodying poets such as Homer and Pindar and tragedians such as Euripides

- he enjoyed mocking the grandeur of tragedy and often brought gods and heroes onto the stage as cowardly