Modern Theatre Vs Greek Theatre

Just as art has been a major part of human history, so has theatre and performing arts. It takes shape in storytelling, dance, and acting. According to the History of Theatre, ‘studies of wall paintings in Africa, France, and Spain reveal that humans were engaged in sophisticated forms of artistic expression as early as 20,000 years ago.’ This was apparently before the development of some skills and habits that helped advance civilization. Through this paper, we will discuss what sorts of theatre arose in ancient times. Though times change (as they should), some elements remain the same. A lot of modern theatre has its basis in Greek and Roman theatre. Items such as cranes and rotating panels were created as early as the 4th century BCE in …show more content…
Up until the recent discovery of the Abydos Passion Play, it was always taught that Greece was the epicenter of drama, as is stated by one of the acting teachers at Florida School of the Arts, Ms. Patricia Crotty. Part of the reasoning, if not the main reasoning, behind this is because there is better documentation of Greek Drama than there is Egyptian Drama. We have thirty-two extent tragedies and 11 comedies from Ancient Greece compared to the one tablet Ikhernofret recorded the Passion Play on. That amount seems abundant when you compare the two, but the extent Greek dramas are a small percentage of what was written during the Golden Age of Greek theatre. The classic age of Greek Drama began around the 5th century BCE with the birth of Aescylus in 525 BCE and continued through the death of Aristophanes death in 385 BCE according to Bedford. For the Greeks, it was a sense of community and citizens would spend entire days at the theatre, especially those who were wealthier. Much like the characters of Fiddler on the Roof, everyone knew who they were and what they were supposed to do. If they didn’t, they were called