Visual Sources

Theatre at Thorikos 525-485 BC

• Location: Thorikos, a deme in Attica

• Features:

  • Straight facing theatron with curved seating at the ends

  • More rectangular shape of orchestra compared to its circular counterparts

  • Capacity: 3,000 spectators (notably large for a deme theatre)

  • Presence of a temple and altar at each end of the performance area

  • Lack of any permanent building behind the acting area

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Demonstrates how a different shape of the theatre could enhance acoustics

  • The shape of the orchestra illustrates various structural possibilities for orchestras in theatres

  • Large capacity signifies the importance of theatre in rural communities

  • Religious significance highlighted by presence of the altar

  • Absence of a permanent building suggests that a skene was not consistently used

• Limitations:

  • Only available evidence is a photo; current state of ruins is uncertain

  • Ruins are in a very deteriorated condition

  • The photo captures only one side of the theatre

  • Lacks evidence for machinery; majority of skene not preserved

  • Does not provide insight into acting and staging processes

Theatre of Dionysus in Athens (Early 5th Century Until Roman Times)

• Location: Athens

• Features:

  • Circular 20m diameter orchestra

  • Prohedria (VIP row) with a central seat for the Priest of Dionysus

  • Altars and religious sanctuary adjacent to the theatre

  • Existing foundations of a skene

  • Horseshoe-shaped theatron

  • Capacity: 17,000 spectators

  • Street at the back connecting the theatre to the agora (city marketplace)

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Large orchestra facilitates the use of a large chorus and extensive movements

  • Reflects the societal division in theatre through social classes

  • Strong emphasis on the role of religion in theatrical performances

  • Demonstrates the use of backdrop in plays

  • Provides evidence for ease of access and good acoustics, granting viewers excellent visibility from all seats

  • Highlights the significance of theatre in everyday life for Athenians

• Limitations:

  • Only available evidence is a photo; ruins have deteriorated over time

  • Lack of evidence of machinery

  • Majority of skene not preserved

  • Does not illustrate acting and staging methods

Perseus Dance Vase (420-410 BC)

• Location: Athens

• Depiction:

  • Comic actor Perseus depicted on stage, brandishing a sickle used to behead Medusa (whose head is in a bag)

  • Actor shown dancing or mimicking flight akin to Perseus' actions from the myth

  • Two audience members are present at the stage's foot; one is an older bearded man and the other a younger man

  • Audience members are seated on wooden chairs called klismoi, similar to those in the Theatre of Dionysus

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Illustrates how mythical scenes might be portrayed in theatre

  • Demonstrates use of costume, emphasizing the actor's skin-tight outfit visible at the wrists and ankles

  • Indicates that actors sometimes performed shoeless

  • Highlights the use of a raised wooden platform for performances

  • Shows the significance of facial hair in determining perceived age

  • Implicates the elite status of audience members seated in prohedria due to the special chairs

• Limitations:

  • Vase contains reconstructed features due to damage

  • Absence of the chorus in the depiction; role and significance unrepresented

  • Identity of the two seated figures is ambiguous; they could be:

    • Two judges

    • Priest of Dionysus and another priest

    • Dionysus paired with his consort Ariadne

    • Choregos and a playwright

Medea's Escape (c. 400 BC)

• Location: Southern Italy

• Representation:

  • Depicts the story of Medea’s escape; her two sons are shown deceased on an altar with Furies above them

  • Medea is depicted escaping on a chariot drawn by dragons, circled by the sun

  • The narrative is contextualized as a response to her husband's infidelity with another woman, Jason

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Indicates the use of advanced stagecraft; Medea would have been suspended above the stage using a crane

  • Jason's bare-chestedness emphasizes heroic traits, contrasting with traditional tragic hero norms

  • Artistic intensity heightened by a gaze between Medea and Jason

• Limitations:

  • Furies’ presence is not consistent with Medea’s traditional escape narrative

  • Sons would typically not be left on an altar but buried with her

  • Might represent exaggeration of the original play's scene (dragons not being realistic)

Telephus Vase (c. 380-370 BC)

• Location: Southern Italy

• Scene Depicted:

  • Based on Aristophanes’ ‘Women at the Thesmophoria’ where the focus is on women discussing actions against Euripides

  • Features Euripides’ spy dressed as a woman to eavesdrop

  • The comedic twist reveals that the spy threatens a baby, which is actually a sack of wine

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Showcases male actor in elaborate dressing characterized by feminine attire (shaved beard and woman’s headband)

  • Depicts a significant moment in comedic performance traditions

  • Reflects on gender roles and societal commentary through humour and farce

• Limitations:

  • Context of the scene may not fully encapsulate all aspects of the play due to artistic abstraction

Basel Dancers Vase (c. 500-490 BC)

• Location: Athens

• Depiction:

  • Illustrates a tragic chorus in action from an early fifth-century performance

  • Suggests a figure rising from an altar, speculated to be a ghost from Aeschylus’ ‘Persians’ or an icon of Dionysus on the altar

  • Features young men dancing in a choreographed rectangular pattern, suggesting organized performance styles

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Offers insight into early tragic performance rituals

  • Highlights the use of masks and military costumes among the chorus

  • Indicates the tradition of choruses performing barefoot, typical for these performances

• Limitations:

  • The interpretation of the rising figure is not definitively established, leading to varied readings of the scene’s significance

Pronomos Vase (c. 400 BC)

• Location: Athens

• Depiction:

  • Shows actors preparing for a satyr-play, with an aulus player central to the scene

  • Chorus members are represented offstage but still in costume

  • Masks are illustrated alongside the names of several actors inscribed, highlighting personality in performance

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Provides visual context of actors' preparation stages and backstage activities

  • Representation of female characters played by men in masks demonstrates societal norms in theatrical roles

  • Infers the overall importance of rhythm and musicality in satyr plays, paired with a focus on Dionysus

• Limitations:

  • The vase is limited in colour, thereby narrowing the potential for complete visual appreciation

  • Does not illustrate the full spectrum of theatrical performances or audience reaction

Tragic Actors Dressing (c. 450 BC)

• Location: Athens

• Depiction:

  • Shows two tragic actors or chorus members preparing for a performance

  • One actor dons high boots while his lifelike mask rests beside him, showcasing the costuming method involved

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Offers insights into backstage preparation processes and actor attire

  • The distinctive high boots' construction—thin soles and turned-up toes—illustrates performance mobility

• Limitations:

  • Representation only captures two individuals, offering a narrow perspective on cast and crew dynamics

Choregoi Vase (c. 380 BC)

• Location: Southern Italy

• Scene Depiction:

  • Features a scene from a comedy with four figures on a low stage

  • Left figure identified as ‘Aegisthus’, an important character from the myth involving Agamemnon and Clytaemnestra

  • Depicts three comic actors to the right, with grotesque masks and one actor standing on a wool basket

  • The names above suggest roles and possibly dynamic interactions among characters

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Allows for a visual comparison between tragic and comic costumes and representations

  • Illustrates stage dynamics and character interactions within the story arc

  • Detailed clothing designs provide information about costume design traditions

• Limitations:

  • Uncertainty in narrative context due to the artistic freedom used, making comprehension of the scene challenging

Birds Wine-Jug (c. 510-490 BC)

• Location: Athens

• Depiction:

  • Shows two chorus members dancing, indicated by one figure playing the aulos

  • Chorus members are in elaborate costumes resembling birds, providing insight into animalistic representations

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Affirms the tradition of chorus dancing during odes, supported by other textual sources

  • Costume design suggests deep connections with Dionysian themes through the animalistic portrayal

  • Links to Dionysus strengthens theatre’s connection to ritual and festival practices

• Limitations:

  • Lacks narrative context or additional details about the exact performance or play in which the dance occurred

  • Limited in description of chorus performance beyond dance

Cheiron Vase (c. 380-370 BC)

• Location: Southern Italy

• Depiction:

  • Scene from a comedy where Xanthias, a slave, assists a wounded Cheiron in ascending stairs

  • Actors depicted wearing masks with exaggerated features and other comedy markers like padded costumes

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Sheds light on characters’ costuming choices and physical humor in comedic performance traditions

  • Represents stage structure with a prominent entrance illustrated

• Limitations:

  • Without the original play, authenticity of the scene remains questionable

Pentheus Cup (c. 480 BC)

• Location: Athens

• Depiction:

  • Illustrates the graphic moment of Pentheus being destroyed by his female relatives, showing dismemberment in detail

  • The scene presents an intense evocation of violence that could not be rendered in live performance, typically showcased through messenger speeches

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Depicts direct link to the mythology surrounding Dionysian themes of mania and vengeance

  • Emphasizes the female characters' empowerment symbolized through their violent actions

  • Serves as a historical reflection on theatrical limits in portraying violence

• Limitations:

  • Vase predates Euripides’ work by at least 75 years, indicating wider mythological interpretations rather than specific adaptations of the playwright’s material

Oedipus Vase (330-320 BC)

• Location: Sicily

• Depiction:

  • Likely represents a performance of Oedipus Rex, capturing the scene where the messenger recounts Polybus’ death to Oedipus

  • Artistic liberties include showing Antigone and Ismene, who are not present at this moment in the text

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Provides insight into stage architecture, set designs, and character costumes

  • Highlights how artists took creative liberties when adapting stories, emphasizing a cautionary approach to interpreting sources

• Limitations:

  • Represents a flawed depiction that may not align with the script’s actual occurrences

  • Artistic license risks obfuscating the original narrative intent, requiring skepticism in source analysis

Maenad Vase (430-420 BC)

• Location: Athens

• Depiction:

  • Features women or maenads adorned with thyrsi and tambourines participating in festive rites around a pillar idol of Dionysus

• Significance as Evidence:

  • Demonstrates standard practices of Dionysian worship and typical attire for Bacchants and Maenads

  • Provides context about ceremonial items and typical vases used to serve beverages during rituals

• Limitations:

  • Artistic representation likely lacks authenticity due to its idealized nature

  • Fails to encompass the full spectrum of Bacchic worship, lacking portrayals of dance or other forms of artistic expression