Roman Theatre: Did you mean...?

The Roman theatre of Aspendos is one of the best preserved theatres of the Roman world. The theatre was built in the period 161 - 169 CE during the reign of Marcus Aurelius. The cavea is semicircular in shape and divided in two by a large...

The ancient Greeks built open-air theatres where the public could watch the performances of Greek comedy, tragedy, and satyr plays. They then exported the idea to their colonies throughout the Aegean so that theatres became a typical feature...

The theatre of Marcellus was the largest and most important theatre in Rome and completed in the late 1st century BCE during the reign of Augustus. The architecture of the theatre would become a standard feature of theatres across the empire...

Noh (Nō) theatre is a Japanese performance art which became especially popular from the 14th century CE and which is still performed today. Noh actors, who were always male in the medieval period, famously move and make gestures in a very...

Situated in the Rhone valley, the ancient theatre of Orange, France with its 103-m-long facade, is one of the best preserved of all the great Roman theatres. Built between A.D. 10 and 25, the Roman arch is one of the most beautiful and interesting...

Chikamatsu Monzaemon (1653-1725) was a Japanese playwright who wrote for both the puppet theatre and kabuki. He is regarded as Japan’s greatest dramatist. Apart from their aesthetic appeal, his plays are of value because they provide an insight...

Greek theatre likely sprang from the lyrical performance of ancient epic poetry and the rituals performed in the worship of the god Dionysos where goats were sacrificed and participants wore masks. From the 6th century BCE, Greek tragedy...

A sketch by Aernout van Buchel showing actors on the stage of the Swan theatre in 1596 CE in London, one of the principal theatres of Elizabethan theatre. (Utrecht University Library, Netherlands)

The Hellenistic Theatre at Dion in Macedon with Mount Olympus in the background. The theatre was built into a natural hill during the 3rd century BCE. It underwent several phases of modification during the reign of Philip V (r. 221-179 BCE...

Roman Mosaic depicting theatrical masks of Tragedy and Comedy, 2nd century CE, from Rome. (Palazzo Nuovo, Capitoline Museums)