Dionysus Theater
Theater — the concept known to man since ancient times. Dionysus Theater — the oldest building dedicated to this art, it can rightfully be considered its cradle.
From the history of ancient Greece
The ancient Greeks, as you know, had a huge number of Gods, who were revered in a variety of ways. God Dionys patron of agriculture, and in particular viticulture and winemaking. In his honor, magnificent festivities were held several times a year. They were called Dionysius and lasted several days. In addition to drinking wine, at that time Athens showed small scenes from the life of the Gods of Olympus. Since time, scenes in the genre of tragedy and satire began to show residents of the city outside the festive Dionysius. During his reign, King Pisistrat — a great fan of performances, ordered the construction of a wooden theater in honor of God Dionysus on the top of the Acropolis.
In the IV century. BC, the wooden structure was rebuilt, the theater became marble and significantly grew on a scale. It was a kind of open-air arena, for spectators provided 78 rows. At first I knew that marble chairs « proedria », some personal, were built for them, and other citizens could sit in more distant places. The capacity of the theater — 17 thousand people, which in ancient times was equivalent to half of the inhabitants of Athens. Later, the theater stage was used to conduct gladiatorial fights and circus performances.
Dionys Theater these days
Times of former greatness have passed, people no longer arrange wide walks in honor of Dionysus. The theater, opened by ancient rulers, even before our times, fell into decay and oblivion. But in the modern world, antiquities are appreciated and cherished.
Despite hundreds of years, the marble theater has survived to this day, albeit in the form of ruins. In 2009, it was decided to restore the theater, return it to its former glory and reuse its scene for its intended purpose. The cost of reconstruction was estimated at 6 million euros. With these funds, they planned to repair the walls and bring the stucco and other decorative elements into proper form, and add new rows to the auditorium.
Interesting fact: in the ancient theater there is excellent acoustics. Viewers from the back rows always had a great hearing of everything that was said on the stage, and today any tourist has the opportunity to check it on himself.
Repair was completed in 2015, during the work it was possible to preserve the archaeological and cultural value of this object of ancient Greek history. At the same time, tourists had the opportunity to feel like a resident of the old city and watch the performance of satires on the stage of the Dionys Theater.
