Vocal theater 5 letters crossword clue Theatrical and musical art of antiquity. The origin of the antique drama

In the era of the Greek classics, in the person of three great tragedians - Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides - and the comedian Aristophanes, theatrical art also made its highest rise.

The birth of Greek drama and theater is associated with religious and cult rites dedicated to the dying and resurrecting gods of fertility, primarily Dionysus .

V Greek mythology Dionysus (or Bacchus) is the god of the fruitful forces of the earth, vegetation, viticulture and winemaking. Since ancient times, at the festivities in his honor, solemn processions to the temple have been arranged. People dressed up in goatskins, tied up horns, hooves and tails, depicting satyrs, companions of Dionysus, and sang solemn hymns in chorus -praises ... This is where the name "tragedia" came from, literally meaning "song of the goats". Along with the dithyrambs, the mummers' retinue of Dionysus sang merry carnival songs and made noisy merriment. Gradually, the lead singer stood out from the dancing choir of the creepers -luminary , whose party grew more and more.

Over time, these theatrical performances became part of public holidays, one of which, in 534 BC, the Athenian poetThespides for the first time, in addition to the chorus, he introduced one actor-reciter. The actor entered into a dialogue with the choir and the lead singer, gave explanations during the performance, portrayed various characters, that is, becamebearer of action ... This is why 534 BC. is considered the birth year of the world theater.

So, the early Greek tragedy was a kind of dialogue between the actor and the choir. Its content was associated with the myths of Dionysus, with the depiction of his "passions", death and resurrection. Then other myths, as well as historical plots, began to be used.

Already in the second half of the 6th century BC. the tragedy has received significant development. It reached its culmination in democratic Athens in the 5th century BC.

The classic form of tragedy was given byAeschylus , weakening her cult attachment and strengthening the independence of the theater. He increased the number of actors to two and Sophocles to three. Thus, dramatic action, independent of the chorus, became possible. The chorus began and ended the performance, and also commented on the events in the course of the action. Not participating in the plot of the tragedy, the choir created an emotional atmosphere in which the hero stayed, and this atmosphere changed in the course of events. There were 12 - 15 people in the choir, but he spoke of himself in the first person - "I", emphasizing the solidity of the people's judgment. It is important to emphasize that in the 5th century BC. - the classical age of tragedy - the choir was assembled from amateurs, that is, from the Athenian citizens themselves.

Choir singing in unison accompanied by musical instruments, primarily flutes, alternated with spoken dialogues and speech recitation, which could also have a musical accompaniment. In the works of Euripides, solo singing appears, the so-called monody ("song of one") to the accompaniment of flute or cithara.

Every tragedy is a struggle, it is hard and tragic. Obstacles on life path tragic hero, irresistible, they are erected by fate - a force against which a person is powerless. However, the tragic hero is ready to die for his beliefs.

In the ancient theater, old tragedies were usually not repeated, so the number of works written is huge: each of the Athenian tragedies created about 100 tragedies. However, time has preserved only a small part of what was written.

Among the surviving works of Aeschylus (7 tragedies), a special place is occupied by"Chained Prometheus". The image of Prometheus is one of the brightest in the entire ancient tragedy, he became a symbol of tyranny,

If Aeschylus became the founder of a civil by its sounding tragedy, thenSophocles attracted more moral issues... His heroes are incarnation moral ideal antiquity, people endowed with tremendous fortitude. Such is Oedipus ("King Oedipus" , "Oedipus at Colon" ) - guilty without guilt, who involuntarily committed a terrible sin and, in order to atone for it, gouged out his eyes. Such is Antigone ("Antigone"), going for the sake of love for her brother to feat and death.

A different hero is put forward by tragedyEuripides , which shows a person with all his weaknesses and vices, without seeking to exalt, "lift" above the ordinary. Exploring human nature, Eurippedes accentuates deep contradictions in it, spiritual confusion, the struggle of passions. His heroes are obsessed with love, jealousy, sometimes for the sake of personal happiness, they commit crimes. It was with Euripides that the theme of passion for love first became the basis of a tragic action. So,"Medea" - the tragedy of offended love and jealousy,"Hippolyte" - the tragedy of criminal love (Phaedra's love for her own stepson).

Most expressive in Euripides female images- Medea, Phaedra, Electra, Iphigenia. The sublime heroic image of the young Iphigenia ("Iphigenia in Aulis" and "Iphigenia in Taurida" ) - a daughter sacrificed by her own father. All her mental strength is directed towards the good of her homeland. The theme of patriotism, readiness for heroism was suggested to Euripides by the events of his contemporary reality: in the era of the Peloponnesian War, which was painful for all of Greece, the poet called for thinking about saving his homeland.

A similar desire is to express in artistic form the most pressing social, ethical, philosophical problems of their time - the whole ancient tragedy is permeated.

Along with tragedy, the ancient theater also knew comedy. Its origin also originates from ritual actions in honor of Dionysus with a procession of a cheerful crowd of mummers, their songs and jokes (the name of the genre is associated with them, which can be translated as "song of revelers"). The heyday of ancient Greek comedy is associated with the work of Aristophanes, where a bold satire is given on the political and cultural state of Athens at the time that began in the 4th century BC. crisis of democracy("The Riders" , "Peace" , "Frogs" , "Clouds" ).

Like a tragedy, the antique comedy was musical: it was accompanied by choral and solo songs, merry dances. In accordance with the general nature of the genre - sharply satirical, sometimes rude, unconstrained - the music was also light and lively.

Theatrical performance was considered in Ancient Greece an event of national importance. Theatrical performances were held during national holidays and lasted 3 - 4 days from early morning until sunset. All cases at this time were suspended, courts were closed, even prisoners were released from prisons. The audience at such shows was represented by all strata of society, and the poor even received money from the authorities to enter.

Theater in Ancient Greece was held in the open air. The performers performed on a round rammed platform -orchestra. It was located at the foot of a hill, along the slope of which benches for spectators descended in a semicircle -theatron ... Behind the orchestra wasskene - a small wooden or stone structure where costumes and sets were kept, and the actors were preparing for new role... Over time, the front part of the skene, facing the audience, began to depict the scene of the action taking place. Under Sophocles, decorations appeared - painted boards or canvases. The curtain was missing.

The oldest theater in Athens was the Theater of Dionysus on the southeastern slope of the Acropolis. At first it was made of wood and was built only for the duration of the performances. In the 4th century BC. the theater of Dionysus was built of stone. It accommodated up to 17 thousand spectators.

The main thing that distinguished the ancient Greek actor was a mask that covered almost the entire head. For each role there was a special mask by which the viewer guessed who was in front of him: a king or a priest, a man or a woman. The female roles were played by men. The presence of a mask excluded facial expressions from theatrical play, the more attention was paid to the gesture. Greek actors worked a lot on the expressiveness of the body, the art of movement. In addition, they had to sing and dance well.

To stand out from the chorus, the actors wore special shoes on high platforms -koturny ... The tragic actor wore a chiton - a wide linen shirt, over which he wore a cloak - a chlamyda.

The artistic ideas of the ancient theater with its inextricable synthesis of poetry and music have forever remained in the memory of generations and served as the basis for further development performing arts.

similar performances were staged in other countries Of the ancient world... An example is the ancient Egyptian mysteries dedicated to the god Osiris.

A group of dancing and singing performers participating in the stage performance of an ancient Greek drama.

Literature

• Stoessl F. Chor // KP. Bd. 1. 1979. Sp. 1154-1159
• Bacon H. The Chorus in Greek Life and Drama // Arion. Vol. 3. 1995. P. 6-24
• Wilson P. Leading the Tragic Khoros: Tragic Prestige in the Democratic City // Greek Tragedy and Historian / Ed. by C. Pelling. Oxford, 1997. P. 81-108
• Wilson P. The Athenian Institution of the Khorēgia: the Chorus, the City and the Stage. Cambridge, 2000
• Zarifi Y. Chorus and Dance in the Ancient World // The Cambridge Companion to Greek and Roman Theater / Ed. by M. McDonald, J. M. Walton. Cambridge, 2007. P. 227-245
• Hall E. Greek Tragedy. Suffering under the Sun. Oxford, 2010
• History of Greek Literature / Ed. SI Sobolevsky and others. In 3 volumes. T. I. M .; L., 1946
• Bondar L. D. Athenian liturgies of the 5th-4th centuries. BC NS. SPb., 2009
• Kulishova OV Ancient theater: organization and design of dramatic performances in Athens in the 5th century. BC. SPb., 2014

Choir is collective singing. People began to resort to it from time immemorial. When ritual dances around the fire were accompanied by throat cries. The tonality of joint chanting had a wide spectrum and served to appease the higher powers so that they would grant prey, weather and tranquility. With the development of civilization, the attitude to singing also changed, which resulted in a separate direction. Gradually, it absorbed different tendencies, it became more difficult to execute. The complication of vocal parts led to the fact that it was not possible to perform a vocal composition without special skills and training. V Ancient egypt, Babylon and China professional performers began to appear. Music in Greece began around this period.

2500 thousand years BC in Egypt, people appeared who, with the help of their hands, controlled chants. They were called cheirones, and it was they who stood at the origins of the emergence of conducting. The Egyptians used not only hand movements to control the choir, but also finger gestures, head turns and even facial expressions. Collective chants sounded in temples during ritual sacraments and religious ceremonies. With the help of songs, the Egyptians glorified the god Osiris, in Babylon they composed verses in honor of the almighty Marduk. The Heirones, who led the temple ensemble, enjoyed respect among the people along with the priests, as persons close to the gods. Unlike Egypt and Babylon, the ancient Greek choir found its way during the heyday of the theatrical art.

Music in Greece. At the dawn of theater

Worship of the gods distinctive features cult rites and religious sacraments demanded from the participant of the ritual the ability to control the voice, know dance and poetry. With a fairly democratic approach to the talents of parishioners, almost the entire urban population became participants in the rituals. One of the meanings of the word "choir" is the term "Fenced off place", that is, a place for holding round dances. Every self-respecting city considered it necessary to have one. Among the admirers of the choral art were representatives of the nobility and merchants. But the most famous patrons were the gods Apollo and Dionysus. In gratitude, people dedicated to the first - peans, to Dionysus - praises.

During the Delphic period of Greek history, worship of the two cults was considered natural, and choral singing developed into a complex lyrical form. It contained elements of pean and dithyramb. The music progressed along with the singing. It became more complicated, various currents and directions were added. As the accompaniment became more complicated, the manner of the choral singing also changed. Along with simple choirs, choirs of virtuosos arose, who traveled around the country and, with their skills, propagated the Delphic culture, religious preferences and political convictions. With the help of professional choirs, the ideological Delphic hegemony was formed, characteristic of the period of the 6th and 7th centuries.

Among the variety of choral arts in Ancient Greece special meaning have praises, that is, odes and verses dedicated to the god of winegrowers and winemakers Dionysus. For the first time, an individual voice was used in dithyrambs in combination with collective singing. The soloist was called the lead singer, who, performing a solo part, opposed himself to the chorus. This art form made it possible to bring an element of dialogue into the production, which gave rise to a new direction - drama.

Tragic genre

It is impossible to say for sure where exactly the birth of the drama from the praise took place. With the mobility of choirs in those days, new trends in art were prescribed not to a specific city, but to God, in particular Dionysus. The involvement of an individual person in the choir made it possible to bring an element of dialogue, and therefore drama, into the performance. As time went on, the Delphic influence in ancient Greece began to wane, Athens began to show cautious courage in making decisions and seek greater independence. This tendency manifested itself in art as well. In Athens, an order was given to involve townspeople as members of the choir. Delphic hegemony came to an end, it was replaced by ethnic movements that turned choral singing in a new direction.

The decline of the Delphic culture provoked a surge of poetry, which, combined with new directions in choral singing, gave a new impetus to the development of theatrical art and, as a part of it, collective chanting. Along with the development of the choral and dramatic directions, the theater, where the performances were staged, began to change. The Athens theater of that time consisted of three parts:

orchestras;

theatron;

The theatron was intended for the audience and was a semblance of an amphitheater, the skene served as a dressing room, a wardrobe room and a warehouse for props. Skene was located on opposite side orchestras, where the main events took place. The dramatic genre received a new impetus to development, when a new character, a leading figure, was added to one actor who performed with the choir. His task was to pronounce the introductory part, comment on unexpected turns of events, and explain controversial points. The luminary became a link between the actor and the choir, which resulted in new forms of choral and theatrical genres.

Hard times

Music in Greece has endured difficult times. The action of ancient Greek performances at the time of the inception of drama adhered to one scheme. At the beginning of the performance there was a lengthy choral introduction. Then the main part began, which was divided into choral compositions of various lengths and solo remarks of the actor. At certain moments, a dialogue arose between the soloist and the ensemble, but this form of the performance did not imply real drama. The entire performance, despite the fact that lyrical moments alternated with dramatic ones, poured into a series of choral compositions, interrupted by the actor's monologues and verbal insertions by the luminary.

Things got off the ground when Aeschylus added a second to one actor. Sophocles went even further and inserted a third into the play. Soon a fourth was added to the third, and the process became irreversible. Such reformism gave a new impetus to the development of drama, but threw back choral singing. With magnification actors, the performance has become more lively, energetic, mobile. Dramatic moments were put at the forefront, and the choral inserts began to simply interfere with the action taking place on the stage.

During the performance, the choir was temporarily removed from the performance, then returned. This is what the directors did when the action was transferred from one city to another or from the battlefield to another place. But the long-standing traditions of Greek art, the adherence to the choir as a traditional form of performance, did not allow choral singing to disappear from the stage. Some directors wanted to breathe into the choir singing new life trying to make the most rational use in staging. But the appearance of intrigue in the performances, that is, of some kind of mystery, again threw the choir to the backyard theatrical performance... Gradually, the participation of the choir in performances was reduced to filling in intermissions and pauses. The performed compositions had nothing to do with the action taking place on the stage.

Choir in the service of comedy

Comedy in ancient Greek theater developed according to a different scenario than drama. It was based not on praises, but on dubious and abusive couplets of mummers. According to old traditions, mummers were divided into two groups and opposed to each other. A similar form of confrontation was adopted by comedy, where not one choir, consisting of the traditional 24 singers, was used, but two half-members of 12 people. The performances staged according to this principle were more lively, the proximity to reality attracted the audience.

Two semi-chorias began to be diluted with luminaries, which gave the performance a novelty and originality. However, the introduction of the verbal element into the performance, as in the case of the drama, diminished the importance of the chorus and pushed it into the background.

The lack of demand for the chorus in the theater did not completely ruin the genre. If the comedy finally parted with choral singing, then over the course of time, it has been reinstated in the drama more than once. Modifying collective chants, giving new forms, the directors from time to time inserted choral compositions into the action. Some directions, such as recitation, were not successful. And the replacement of difficult psychological moments with choral singing became a godsend for the directors.

Choral singing in Ancient Greece laid the foundation not only for this genre, but also gave impetus to the development of all theatrical art.

Ancient city Dion

Telling about the divine love of Zeus for Fie, the daughter of the destroyer of the Greeks Deucalion, Geosides says that the girl became pregnant by God and bore him two sons, Macedon and Magnet. They lived near Olympus in Pieria. The sacred site of Zeus in these lands was Dion in the foothills of Olympus. Ancient Dion, it was first mentioned by the ancient Greek historian Thucydides, when describing the route of the campaign of the Spartan commander Brasidas, through Thessaly, to the country of his ally, King Perdik 2. It was the first city that Brasidas met on the way, crossing the border in the summer of 424 BC. n. NS.

Vatopedi monastery

Vatopedi Monastery (otherwise called simply Vatopedi) is located in the northeast of the Athos peninsula. This is a Greek monastery Orthodox Church... It ranks second in importance in the hierarchy of the Athonite monasteries (the honorable first place is occupied by the Lavra of St. Athanasius). Vatopedi is one of the largest, oldest and richest Athonite monastic cloisters.

Homer's Iliad

The Iliad is a poem about war. The poem is named "Iliad" in honor of Ilion (that is, Troy) - the city where the events described in the poem take place. In the 12th century BC, Greek tribes captured and burned Troy, a powerful city located on the Asian coast of the Hellespont. The theme of the Iliad is the "wrath" of Achilles against Agamemnon and its dire consequences. All events in the Iliad take place over 52 days, the poem consists of 15537 verses, which form 24 songs

Honey in Greece

Caryatids - a monument of ancient Greek architecture

What do you know about Caryatid? This landmark of Greece is on the list of TOP 10 monuments that must be visited upon arrival in the country.

ancient greece antique theater

The birth of the ancient theater

It is known from Greek mythology that the supreme god Zeus and the goddess of memory Mnemosyne had nine daughters who were born at the foot of Olympus - nine beautiful virgins with pure hearts and wonderful voices. They were called muses, patron goddesses of arts and sciences. The muses lived on the top of the sacred mountain Parnassus or on the slopes of the sacred mountain Helikon. Drawing water from the Kastalsky spring or from the source of Hippocrenus, the muses presented it to the chosen ones, and those, having tasted this life-giving moisture, became poets and singers, dancers and actors, musicians and scientists. Almost all of the sisters were associated with the theater, but only two of them - Melpomene and Thalia - are symbols of the performing arts.

Melpomene was at first considered the muse of tragedy, but then expanded her "possessions", sphere of interests and became a muse and patroness drama theater generally. The theater began to be called the Temple of Melpomene.

She was depicted adorned with grape leaves, with an ivy wreath on her head, on coturnas, with a tragic theatrical mask in one hand and a sword or club in the other.

Thalia's name comes from the Greek words for "blossom", "grow". In mythology, she became the patroness of comedy and light cheerful poetry. She was usually depicted with a comic mask in her hand, with an ivy wreath on her head, sometimes with a shepherd's staff or a tambourine.

Ancient Greece can be considered the birthplace of the drama theater. The first theater was created in Greece in the 5th century BC.

Ancient theater - theatrical art of Ancient Greece, Ancient rome, as well as a number of countries in the Middle East, whose culture developed under strong Greek influence during the Hellenistic era - a period that began in the IV century. BC NS. (campaigns of Alexander the Great) and ended in 30 BC. NS. the conquest of these countries by Rome.

Only men could be actors - they also played female roles. This tradition in different countries, in different cultures was very persistent - such are the theater of the times of Shakespeare, Chinese and Japanese theater.

The actor of the ancient theater mastered the technique of reading, the art of singing and dancing. An ancient Greek actor could play several roles during the performance. He went to the orchestra (a round platform on which the actors and the choir performed and around which the spectators were located) wearing a mask that was worn with a wig over the head (like a helmet), had holes for the eyes and mouth; the latter was equipped with a metal resonator, amplifying the voice: with the huge sizes of theaters, the mimicry of a living human face was not visible to the audience. Therefore, the actor changed the mask not only when, in the course of the action, he appeared in front of the audience in a new role, but also when he showed the audience a change in the mental states of the same character. On the feet of the actors were koturny (high-soled shoes), which made them taller, and the image they created was more monumental. The movements thanks to the koturnam were distinguished by their smoothness and majesty.

In the era of Hellenism, pantomimes also became widespread. This genre did without words, did not resort to singing either: a mimic dance told about everything. Most often it was a "theater of one actor" who easily changed his appearance with the help of a mask.

The ancient theater is a universal value. The more you learn about him, the more you are surprised how much they knew, could, were able to the people of the small Greek state, which was distant from us for almost three thousand years.

Everything that has been achieved by the world theater arts stands on the foundation of ancient culture and owes to the poetic heritage of Ancient Greece. It is no coincidence that all our theatrical terminology - (theater, stage, drama, tragedy, comedy, chorus, orchestra, monologue, dialogue, facial expressions, etc.) - is of Greek origin.

The theater developed along with poetic, musical, fine arts... Its main basis was drama - tragedy and comedy - which grew out of cult mythology.

The theater was a favorite place for entertainment, political, moral confrontations, and contributed to the education of the civil maturity of the entire population.

Acquaintance with the art of Antiquity, the study of it provide food for the creative development of mankind for millennia.

If the era of archaicism most densely expressed itself in the lyrics, then classical Greece showed itself in Attic tragedy - a genre that most closely corresponds to the spirit of ancient culture. In the Greek tragedy, such an aesthetic category as catharsis, that is, the purification, ennoblement of people, found expression.

Theater occupied a special place in the life of the ancient Greeks; it was a platform for the wide dissemination of new ideas, highlighting the problems that most worried the minds of contemporaries. His social and educational role was great. Although, as a rule, the plots of Greek tragedies originated from myths familiar to everyone from childhood, this did not mean that the performances were not contemporary and did not touch on burning issues. Indeed, in the mouths of mythological heroes, playwrights have always put words concerning the most acute problems of our time. Therefore, dramatic poetry (without exception, all tragedies and comedies in Greece were written in poetry), was able to overshadow others literary genres and become the dominant genre for a whole century.

Tragedy (literally "song of the goats") arose from a choral song, from a praise sung by satyrs dressed in goatskins and depicting cheerful companions of the Greek god of winemaking Dionysus. In Athens, there was an annual national holiday - the Great Dionysias, during which scenes from myths were played out, accompanied by a choir of satyrs. In the 5th century BC, 3 actors were added to the choir, leading a dialogue with it - this is how drama, theatrical performance, arose.

Greek theater was in many ways different from modern theater. Firstly, there were no permanent troupes in Greece, and professional actors did not appear immediately. Funding and organizing theatrical performance (liturgy) was one of the responsibilities (choregy) of the wealthiest citizens. Secondly, the very structure of the Greek theater was peculiar and rather resembled a modern stadium. The performance was held in the open air, on a round platform - an orchestra. The spectators' benches were cut right into the rocky slopes of the hill, at the foot of which an orchestra was arranged. The Greeks called this simplest auditorium a theater. In such a huge open theater, it was impossible to see either the facial expressions of the actors or the details of their costumes, so the actors performed in masks denoting either the stage type of the character, or the state of mind or character. It was also necessary to increase the figure of the actor, who for this wore shoes on a high platform (koturny). There were almost no sets in the Greek theater. All this limited set of pictorial means (masks, costumes, lack of scenery, etc.) was associated with the orientation of the entire ancient culture, including the Greek theater, towards auditory, acoustic perception. Ancient culture was the culture of the spoken, not the written word.

As in other areas of Greek culture, agon (competition) was certainly present in the theater. Theatrical performances went on for three days in a row, during the celebration of the Great Dionysios. They gave necessarily three tragedies and one satire drama, i.e. comedy. Each performance was attended by three playwrights, and the audience had to determine the best production, the best actor, the best chorega (the organizer of the performance). On the final day of the holiday, the winners received awards.