The Great Theatre of Ancient Epidaurus

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Theaters

The theatre of Epidaurus represents the finest and best-preserved example of a classical Greek theatre. Even by today's standards, this monument stands out as a unique artistic achievement through its admirable integration into the landscape and above all the perfection of its proportions and incomparable acoustics. It was built in 330-20 BC and enlarged in the mid-2nd century AD. 

The overall 55 rows of seats rest on a natural slope and face the stage area set against a backdrop of lush landscape. The theatre is marvelled for its exceptional acoustics. Any sound on the open-air stage, whether a stentorian voice or a whisper, a deep breath or the sound of a match struck is perfectly audible to all spectators, even in the topmost row of seats, that is, nearly 60 m away. 

The answer to what makes the sound transmit so well comes from recent scientific studies: The arrangement of the stepped seating rows acts as an acoustic filter that deadens low-frequency background sounds, such as the murmurs of the audience, while amplifying the high-frequency sounds from the stage. 

History

According to Pausanias, the ancient theatre was constructed by the architect Polykleitos the Younger. Pausanias praises the theatre for its symmetry and beauty. At a maximum capacity of 13,000 to 14,000 spectators, the theatre hosted music, singing and dramatic games that were included in the worship of Asclepius.

It was also used as a means to heal patients, since there was a belief that the observation of dramatic shows had positive effects on mental and physical health.

Today, the monument attracts a large number of Greek and foreign visitors and is used for the performance of ancient drama plays. The first modern performance conducted at the Epidaurus theatre was Sofocles's tragedy Electra. It was played in 1938, directed by Dimitris Rontiris, starring Katina Paxinou and Eleni Papadaki.

Performances stopped due to World War II. Theatrical performances, in the framework of the organized festival, began again in 1954. In 1955 they were established as an annual event for the presentation of ancient drama. The Epidaurus Festival continues today and is carried out during the summer months.

The theatre has been sporadically used to host major musical events. In the framework of the Epidaurus Festival, well-known Greek and foreign actors have appeared, including the Greek soprano Maria Callas.

Description

On the headland called "Nesi" at Palaia Epidaurus, the theatre of the ancient city is quite well-preserved, in the shape it acquired during the latter years of its function. Apart from a few rows of seats, the cavea is made of limestone with poros staircases. 

Until now, nine cunei with eighteen rows of seats have been excavated, which originally could accomodate about 2000 spectators. All the benches and thrones of the theatre carry inscriptions with the names of the donors while implying a direct relationship of the monument with the cult of Dionysos. 

From the inscriptions on the monument it is deduced that it was constructed in sections, starting at the middle of the 4th century B.C. and continuing into the Hellenistic period. There may have been an earlier, simpler form of the theatre. During the Roman period, the orchestra bacame semi-circular with the erection of a stage nearer to the cavea, of which the lower part has survived until now. Benches from the cavea have been used for the construction of the city-wall, situated on the top of the second hill of the headland. 

The theatre of the city of Epidaurus was discovered in 1970. The excavations began in 1972 by the then director of the Ephorate, Mrs E. Deilaki, and lasted a few months, bringing to light most of the monument. A second, restricted investigation was carried out in 1989, without entirely revealing it. For the required study, the protection and promotion of the theatre, as well as for the consolidation and restoration of the monument, supplementary excavations have been scheduled. Once the required works are in progress, the monument protected and the safety of its visitors assured, the Town Hall of Ancient Epidaurus has the intention to institute a yearly music festival. It will bring to life this small theatre which had been in use for centuries along with the larger and more famous one at the Sanctuary of Asklepios (Lygourio).

Excavations and buildings

The excavations at Epidaurus were executed by P. Kavadias and lasted from 1881 until his death. The excavations were undertaken by the Archaeological Society. Important role in the course of the excavations was the selfless offer of the residents of Lygourio, who, apart from their help, offered their land located near the archaeological site. The first area that the visitor faces upon reaching the archaeological site is the entrance. 

The entrance, which construction dates back to the Mycenaean times, consisted of two galleries with 6 columns each, built in Ionian and Corinthian type. The second building is the temple of Asclepius, which construction lasted for 5 years. It was a Doric temple where Asclepius statue was hosted. The statue was made by Thrasymedes from Paros Island. Behind the temple there was the dome, which was the most famous building of the sanctuary. Other buildings were the house of priests, the temples to Artemis, the temple of Apollo and finally the theatre.

The theatre of the city of Epidaurus was discovered in 1970 and fully excavated in 1989.

The theatre was designed by Polykleitos in the 4th century BC.

The ancient theatre of Epidaurus has been included by UNESCO in its list of World Heritage Sites.

Plays continue to be performed in the theatre as part of the Greek festival season during the months of July & August.

After your tour of the ancient theatre of Epidaurus, you may stop for lunch at any one of the local tavernas in the vicinity or visit the villages of “Koliaki” or “Traxeia” which are famous for their local cheeses, bread and home-made pasta.

Source/Photography/Bibliography

Defrasse A. and Lechat H., Epidaure: restauration et description des principaux monuments d u sanctuaire d’Asclépios, 'Paris, '1895

http://www.poseidonion.com

Γώγος Σ., Γεωργουσόπουλος Κ. – Ομάδα Θεατρολόγων, «ΕΠΙΔΑΥΡΟΣ: το Αρχαίο Θέατρο και οι Παραστάσεις», Αθήνα 2004

http://www.epidavros.gr

A. von Gerkan , W. Müller , Das Theater von Epidaurus, Wiener 1961

Καββαδίας Π., Το Ασκληπιείο της Επιδαύρου Επανέκδοση του έργου Το Ιερόν του Ασκληπιού εν Επιδαύρω και η θεραπεία των ασθενών (Αθήνα 1900)

http://www.culture.gr

Καζολιάς Ε., Μελέτη προστασίας, συντήρησης και αποκατάστασης του σκηνικού οικοδομήματος του αρχαίου θεάτρου Επιδαύρου, α΄φάση: άμεσα μέτρα προστασίας και αποκατάστασης των ευπαθών τμημάτων. Επίδαυρος 2010

http://www.gtp.gr

Β. Λαμπρινουδάκης, Ε. Καζολιάς, Μ. Σοφικίτου, Το πρόγραμμα έρευνας, αποκατάστασης και ανάδειξης του αρχαίου θεάτρου Ασκληπιείου Επιδαύρου, εισήγηση στο Διεθνές Συνέδριο «Το αρχαιολογικό έργο στην Πελοπόννησο», Τρίπολη, 7-11 Νοεμβρίου 2012.

https://en.wikipedia.org

Μπολέτης Κ., Ιστορικό των νεότερων επεμβάσεων στο θέατρο του Ασκληπιείου Επιδαύρου και στον ευρύτερο χώρο του έως το 1989, Αρχαιολογικό, Δελτίο,Ανάτυπο, Μέρος Α΄: Μελέτες, Τόμος 57, 2002

Ομάδα Εργασίας για τη συντήρηση των μνημείων Επιδαύρου, Το Ασκληπιείο της Επιδαύρου: η έδρα του θεού γιατρού της αρχαιότητα, η συντήρηση των μνημείων του, Περιφέρεια Πελοποννήσου, 1999

Παπαχατζής Νικ. Δ. Παυσανίου Ελλάδος Περιήγησις, βιβλίο 2ο: ΛΑΚΩΝΙΚΑ, Μετάφραση, Αθήνα, 1989

Ancient theatre at Taormina / Αρχαίο Θέατρο Ταορμίνας

Theaters

Το αρχαίο ελληνικό Θέατρο, κατασκευάστηκε κατά τον 3ο π.Χ. αιώνα κάτω από τον Ιέρωνα τον 2ο, . Την εποχή των αυτοκρατόρων έγιναν στο θέατρο σημαντικές αλλαγές και επεκτάσεις. Κάτω από τους Ρωμαίους κατά πάσα πιθανότητα τον 2ο μετά Χριστό αιώνα, επεκτάθηκε για τους αγώνες μονομαχίας της αρχαίας Ρώμης. Αυτό το θέατρο προσφέρει στους θεατές με το σύνολο της οροσειράς της Αίτνα και την γαλάζια θάλασσα στο βάθος ένα πραγματικό και με λόγια απερίγραπτο, ονειρευτό όμορφο θέαμα. Αυτό το Θέατρο είναι χωρίς αμφιβολία πολύτιμο κόσμημα από ανθρώπινα και ελληνικά χέρια κατασκευασμένο, που αντανακλά με το γαλάζιο χρώμα του ουρανού και της θάλασσας στην καταπράσινη ηρεμία των κοιλάδων και την κάτασπρη κορυφή της Αίτνας.

Σήμερα προσφέρει η πόλη στους απογόνους ένα ασύγκριτο και απανταχού φημισμένο πανόραμα. Τη θέση του αρχαίου Ταυρομενίου επέχει η κωμόπολη Ταορμίνα, πολυσύχναστο τουριστικό κέντρο τόσο για το εξαίρετο κλίμα της όσο για τις αρχαιότητές της, ιδιαίτερα το Ελληνικό Θέατρο, 214 μέτρα πάνω από τη θάλασσα ανάμεσα σε δύο περιοχές, που έχει χωρητικότητα για 30.000 θεατές.

Κάτοψη του αρχαίου θεάτρου στο Ταυρομένιο (Ταορμίνα), Σικελία.

Grundrißs des Theaters zu Tauromenion 1823 HORNER, Johann Jakob. Bilder des griechischen Alterthums oder Darstellung der berühmtesten Gegenden und der wichtigsten Kunstwerke des alten Griechenlandes, Ζυρίχη, Orell, Füssli and Co., M.D.CCC.XXIII [=1823]

But by far the most remarkable monument remaining at Taormina is the Ancient theatre, which is one of the most celebrated ruins in Sicily, on account both of its remarkable preservation and its beautiful location. It is built for the most part of brick, and is therefore probably of Roman date, though the plan and arrangement are in accordance with those of Greek, rather than Roman, theatres; whence it is supposed that the present structure was rebuilt upon the foundations of an older theatre of the Greek period. With a diameter of 109 metres (358 ft) (after an expansion in the 2nd century), this theatre is the second largest of its kind in Sicily (after that of Syracuse); it is frequently used for operatic and theatrical performances and for concerts. The greater part of the original seats have disappeared, but the wall which surrounded the whole cavea is preserved, and the proscenium with the back wall of the scena and its appendages, of which only traces remain in most ancient theatres, are here preserved in singular integrity, and contribute much to the picturesque effect, as well as to the interest, of the ruin. From the fragments of architectural decorations still extant we learn that it was of the Corinthian order, and richly ornamented. Some portions of a temple are also visible, converted into the church of San Pancrazio, but the edifice is of small size.

Hephaestia Theatre

Theaters

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The Greek amphitheater dates from between the late 5th and early 4th century BC. It underwent reconstruction from 2000 to 2004, and in 2010 the first theater play (Sophocles' Oedipus the King) was played after 2500 years. The theatre has capacity of 200 people in the main area, and additional 1000 outside

Hephaistia (Greek: Ἡφαιστία) is an archeological site on the northern shore of Lemnos, Greek island in the northern Aegean Sea. It was named in the honor of Hephaistos, Greek god of metallurgy, whose cult was maintained on the island. It was once the capital of the island (8th to 6th centuries BC), of which only the ruins remained.

In August and September 1926, members of the Italian School of Archaeology at Athens conducted trial excavations on the island. The overall purpose of the excavations was to shed light on the island's "Etrusco-Pelasgian" civilization. The excavations were conducted on the site of the city of Hephaistia (i.e. Palaiopolis) where the Pelasgians, according to Herodotus, surrendered to Miltiades of Athens. There, a necropolis (c. 9th–8th centuries BC) was discovered, revealing bronze objects, pots, and over 130 ossuaries. The ossuaries contained distinctly male and female funeral ornaments. Male ossuaries contained knives and axes whereas female ossuaries contained earrings, bronze pins, necklaces, gold-diadems, and bracelets. The decorations on some of the gold objects contained spirals of Mycenaean origin, but had no Geometric forms. According to their ornamentation, the pots discovered at the site were from the Geometric period. However, the pots also preserved spirals indicative of Mycenaean art. The results of the excavations indicate that the Early Iron Age inhabitants of Lemnos could be a remnant of a Mycenaean population and, in addition, the earliest attested refer to Lemnos is the Mycenaean Greek ra-mi-ni-ja, "Lemnian woman", written in Linear B syllabic script.

Segesta theatre

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Theaters

The Greek theatre of Segesta

The theatre in Segesta dates back probably to the 4th-3rd century BC, and was located in one of the best areas of the town. Built of large masses of stone (without cement and lime), the theatre was quite isolated and of a semi-circular shape, with part of the stage facing west. The “cavea” is contained in a semicircle of about 60 feet diameter.

Elevation géométrale du Théâtre de Segeste. Plan du Théâtre de Segeste. 1782

The theatre stage, of which few traces remain, was originally decorated with columns and pillars.

Several doubts have emerged concerning the date of construction of Segesta Theatre, but the original construction of the “cavea” is thought to date from the late 4th century BC:

"A chronology of the original ‘cavea’ as dating from the second half of the fourth century BC is credible, but we can not exclude some restructuring and functional adaptation. The current shape of the seats suggests the II-I century BC, but we cannot reasonably deny the possibility that these have been replaced."

(M.L. De Bernardi, “Analisi delle anomalie architettoniche dell’attuale ‘cavea’ del Teatro di Segesta” in “Terze Giornate internazionali di studi sull’area elima”, Proceedings, I, 2000: 386).

Reconstruction of Ancient Theatre of Dodoni

One the largest and best preserved ancient Greek theatres, able to accommodate about 18,000 spectators, the Theatre of Dodoni has been on the top of the reconstruction list of the Greek Ministry of Culture for years due to the natural damage and human interventions in its original structure.

Built in 300 BC, the ancient monument has been subjected to extreme weather conditions over the centuries, the Roman era human intervention – it was transformed into an arena, as well as a reconstruction project in the 60’s – which all resulted in shaping a theatre that had nothing in common with the original architectural design.

Fortunately, the theatre was shut down to the public in 2002, after three decades of use that only added to its decay.

From 1999 onwards, countless studies, suggestions and local directives have tried to solve the major issue of reconstructing the theatre according to its original design and with respect to the fragility of the ancient material used and surviving until today.

Finally, this time the restoration and reconstruction of the Theatre of Dodoni is in good hands, as noted by the members of the Central Archaeological Council of Greece, who were convinced of the good work that is being done.

In a meeting yesterday, Mr. George Smiris, architect and president of the Scientific Committee of Dodoni, described the work that has been completed in the first pilot row of seats and the work in progress in the rest of the rows. The ancient stones will be identified through an interesting methodology combining the use of old pictures, excavation diaries and archives.

The members of the Board, however, expressed their fear that casting artificial stone material into the broken architectural parts, will now allow future researchers to distinguish the original ancient stone from the fake implant. Moreover, the Board was concerned that the end result that could be alien to the original design due to the new casted material.

The first problem was solved with the proposal of casting natural stone material instead of artificial. The second problem of the antiquity of the monument was also put aside, since the high humidity of the local climate will soon take its toll on the newly adjusted stones and make them look like they have been there for years.

Professor Manolis Korres placed particular emphasis on the accurate geometrical reconstruction of the monument. Although the material employed may not be the original, what is extremely important is for the new design to be as close to the original as possible.

“The Theatre will not be open to the public any time soon. The reconstruction project aims at protecting and preserving the ancient monument. Let others in the future take the responsibility of reusing it” pointed out Mrs. Mendoni, secretary general of the Ministry of Culture. The reconstruction project is part of the ESPA funding program of the EU with a budget worth three million Euros.

Oracle of Zeus at Dodona