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Petra, Jordan
A successor to Alexander the Great
failed to capture Petra. Nevertheless,
commerce brought the Arabs of this
region into contact with Hellenistic
culture. As a result, much of the
architecture of Petra, including the
theatre, is a blend of Greek and local
elements. (Top; page x)
Taormina, Sicily
The theatre at Taormina, on the east
coast of Sicily, was probably built in
the third century BC, and was enlarged
five centuries later by the Romans.
Taormina was the inspiration for one
cinema style. (See below).
Other great theatres in Greece are at
Argos, Corinth, Megalopolis and
Thorikos (perhaps the oldest of them
all) and at Salarmis in Cyprus.

THE LEGACY
During the second century BC,
Greece came under the control of the
Roman Empire. The Romans modified
many of the theatres for their own
purposes. They gloried in spectacular
effects, even flooding some to portray
sea battles! Greek plays were also
adapted to suit the tastes of Roman
audiences.
After the fall of the Roman Empire
(476AD), the drama of ancient Greece
was largely forsaken. It was not until
the Renaissance (1400-1600AD) that
playwrights and audiences regained an
enthusiasm for the surviving works of Top and above: two views of the theatre at Taormina, Sicily
the Greek masters.
A rejuvenation of the classical style, Further Reading
The first modern production of
known as Neoclassicism, occurred in Art and Thought in the Hellenistic Age
Oedipus The King (Sophocles) was
architecture from the mid-18th century. - The Greek World View. John Onians.
performed in Italy in 1585. Sometimes
It was a reaction against what some Atlas of Classical Archaeology.
the revivals were staged in theatres that M. I. Finley.
saw as the confronting styles of the
resembled those of ancient times, no Cambridge Illustrated History of
Baroque and Rococo.
doubt to lend them a certain Ancient Greece.
Furthermore, from 1748,
authenticity. Cinemas of Australia via USA.,
excavations at Pompeii and
The first ‘atmospheric’ cinema was pp 24-25. Ross Thorne
Herculaneum provided the added The Dramatic Festivals of Athens.
inspired by the theatres of antiquity.
stimulus of a treasure -trove of art and Sir Arthur Pickard-Cambridge.
According to Ross Thorne, the Cort
architecture from the ancient world. Fifty Key Classical Authors.
Theatre, Chicago (1908) which brought A. Sharrock and R. Ash.
a sense of the outdoors inside, came Neoclassicism focused more Greek Theatre. Stewart Ross.
about because of the designer’s towards Roman art during the 18th The Oxford History of Greece and the
admiration for the theatre at Taomina. century. However, the Greek style came Hellenistic World.
to the forefront in the 19th century.
Latin writers, not the Greeks, are The A-Z of Great Writers. Tom Payne.
credited with a profound influence on The styles and traditions of classical
English literature. For example, Seneca Greek drama and theatre continue to
is often cited as the inspiration for the inspire architects, playwrights,
foundations of English drama. Yet the performing artists and audiences to this
influence of Greek literature upon the day. Long may they continue to do so. ★
Romans is similarly undeniable. Roman
literature and myths were often
appropriated from the Greeks. The texts
of both Greece and Rome converge in
English literature.

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