Daily #16

The origins of theatre are tied into religion and politics in many ways. Religion was very important in the origins of theatre because the Athenian religious festival was an integral part to the theatres and they honored the god Dionysus. The tragedies that took place in the theatres occurred in front of temples to be reverent to the Athenian gods. Many of the plays that took place had characters that were either gods or goddesses and sacrifices were often performed during the plays. City Dionysia was a religious festival that included tragedies and comedies that were eventually performed and this festival honored the famous god, Dionysus. The plays probably honored an ancient Greek god or goddesses depending on what the play was about and since religion was so important to the Greeks, they had to infiltrate their own religion somehow. The plays at the theatre of Dionysus were usually performed outdoors in open-air auditoriums because many of the religious affairs were conducted outside. Politics were tied into theatre in ancient Greece because the theatres were funded and taken care by the Athenian government and many of the male actors that performed in the plays were probably in the high class. If the actors performed well enough to exceed everyone’s expectations, they could be offered a political position as a reward of their achievements. The theatres in ancient Greek were not really part of the business world like they are now and the plays went on because the people had the power to make them happen. This means that the democracy was really influential for the theatres of Greece so religion and politics were somehow tied into theatres.