History of Drama

PREHISTORIC PERIOD

2000 BCE

The earliest recorded theatrical event dates back to 2000 B.C. with the passion plays of Ancient Egypt.
The story of the god Osiris was performed annually at festivals throughout the civilization, marking the known beginning of a long relationship between theater and religion.

GREEK PERIOD

534 BCE

The earliest days of western theater remain obscure, but the oldest surviving plays come from the ancient Greece. Most philologists agree that Greek theater evolved from staged religious choral performances, during celebrations to Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and fertility.
Great Dionysia, also called City Dionysia (534/531 B.C.), is an ancient dramatic festival in which tragedy, comedy, and satyric drama originated; it was held in Athens in March in honor of Dionysus, the god of wine.

ROMAN PERIOD

509 BCE

Ancient Roman theater was heavily influenced by the Greek tradition. The Roman dramatists tended to adapt and translate from the Greek as writers in other literary genres did.
Of the hundreds of playwrights of ancient Rome, only a small percentage of plays have survived the passage of time

PLAUTUS

254 BCE

Said to be the Roman comedy master. He created over a hundred plays, many of which lampooned iconic figures within Roman society: the soldier, the politician, the clever slave, the philandering husband, and the wise but nagging wife.

TERENCE

195 BCE

Terence's life story is an ancient tale of rags to riches. Terence was the slave of a Roman senator. Apparently, his master was so impressed with young Terence's intellect that he released him from his service and even funded Terence's education. During his adult years, he crafted comedies which were primarily Roman-styled adaptations of Greek plays by Hellenistic writers such as Menander

SÉNECA

4 BCE

Lucius Annaeus Seneca was a playwright, a lawyer and a Roman senator. He served under the sadistic Emperor Caligula. The next emperor in line, Claudius, banished Seneca, sending him away from Rome for over eight years. After returning, Seneca became the advisor of the infamous Emperor Nero.
During the playwright's lifetime he wrote tragedies, many of them re-inventions of Greek myths of decadence and self-destruction.

MEDIEVAL PERIOD

5

In the Middle Ages, theater was reborn as liturgical dramas, written in Latin and dealing with Bible stories and performed by priests or church members. Then came vernacular drama spoken in the vulgate (that is the language of the people as opposed to Church Latin); this was a more elaborate series of oneact dramas enacted in town squares or other parts of the city. Medieval drama was for the most part very religious and moral in its themes,
staging and traditions.

RENAISSANCE PERIOD

16

Theatrical activities, particularly comedies, flourished in Italy, England and Spain during the 16th and early 17th century.
The stage during the early part of this period was simple; however, at the latter part of the period, more elaborate theaters were constructed to satisfy the needs of the actors and the viewers.
Among the dramatists of the period, William Shakespeare stood out as the greatest. England's major contribution was the lively Elizabethan stage that produced Shakespeare.

MODERN PERIOD

1830

During this period, drama was not only performed live on stage but also enjoyed through the mediums of radio, television, and cinema.
Stage performers became television and movie actors to gain more popularity since television and film have wider audiences compared to stage; moreover they receive a higher pay.