Amphitheater Architecture

The Greek theatre was built up of a few key components.

     The theatron is a large hillside that seats are carved into and sometimes these seats are covered in slabs of marble. This concept of having seats that rise in the theatre has been echoed in the architecture of most theaters. The architecture of amphitheaters allows for the audience to be massive, but still feel like a community. The crescent shape of the hill helps carry the voices of the actors to even the audience members who are furthest away.

A Turkish Amphitheater mimicked the brilliant Classic design.

     The orchestra, at the foot of the theatron, was the flat stage where the actors would speak and gesture. The actors would enter the orchestra through the parodos, from the skene, or by crane. Parodos translates to passageway and was frequently used by actors playing messenger type characters. The Parodos is located at either side of the skene.

Me-Ryong is pointing to the orchestra, which is the flat semi circular area.

     Behind the orchestra was the skene, a large building that was used as a backdrop in ancient Greece. The term "scene" is derived from the name for this structure. The actors would use the skene to change costumes and masks in between dialogue during the choral odes. This building was essential because it offered the actors to opportunity to  create an illusion of reality. Because there were only three actors performing at a time they often changed characters multiple times in a performance. These buildings were originally more similar to tents and eventually evolved into these massive sometimes two story stone buildings. Until the wooden stage was built actors performed in the orchestra.    The wooden stages were also improved upon and built into the skene later on.

A head-on view of the skene ruins at the Turkish Amphitheater.

Me-Ryong in one of the tunnels under the skene.

Arnott, Peter. An Introduction to Greek Theatre. Indiana: Indiana University Press.

Greene, John Richards. (1994) Theatre and ancient Greek society. London: Routledge.