Greece to restore a cradle of theater

November 26, 2009|associated press

ATHENS - The ruined theater under the Acropolis where the works of Euripides and other classical playwrights were first performed some 2,500 years ago will undergo partial restoration over the next six years, Greek officials said yesterday.

The $9 million program is set for completion in 2015 and will include extensive modern additions to the surviving stone seats of the Theater of Dionysos.

Standing on the southern slopes of the Acropolis Hill, the theater was first used in the late sixth century BC. It saw the opening performances of tragedies by Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides, as well as Aristophanes’ comedies - considered the precursors of Western theater.

“The Theater of Dionysos . . . is of immense historic significance, as it is here that the masterpieces of ancient drama were first performed,’’ said Constantinos Boletis, the project leader.

Theater first emerged as an art form in late sixth century BC. In Athens, playwrights competed for a prize during the annual festival of Dionysos - the ancient god of theater and wine.

Originally a terrace where spectators sat on the bare earth above a circular stage, the Theater of Dionysos was rebuilt in limestone and marble during the fourth century BC and modified in Hellenistic and Roman times.