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The ancient Greeks are credited for having invented the theater. This is true only in part. They did not invent the cultural activity of theatrical performance but they introduced special constructions for such performances. How has this to be understood? Among the pre-Greek institutions that impressed the Greeks were rituals and festive processions. The general term for ‘procession’ in ancient Greek is thiasos, an expression of pre-Greek origin. In light of the intensive social interaction of native Europeans and ancient Greeks it is not surprising that the pre-Greek ritual heritage, too, had an impact on the formative process of Greek civilization. Rituals are at the very core of the functioning of culture. All cultures of the world, whether historical or recent, operate with a certain category of behavioral strategies that enhance in-group solidarity, maintain the rigidity of the knowledge obtained from previous generations, and reassure the sustainability of society. There is consensus among scholars that ritual preceded theater, that ritualistic performance provides the mind frame for the reworking of eternal human matters (i.e. love, hatred, liberty, power, death) projected into the fictional world of theater. If this is true, then it is reasonable to assert that theater is ritualistic healing and that the impression of a play goes far beyond entertainment, for example, with the experience of ”drama as therapy”. The sixth century BCE (before common era) saw a breaking away from older ritual traditions and a remodeling of cultural life. The major occurrence was the separation of the theatrical performances from the organization of the processions that continued to be held. The ancient Greeks created an innovation. They separated theatrical performances from religious processions and transferred such performances to separate precincts. And for the audience that gathered special constructions were built: theaters. It is not clear whether the rectangular shape of theaters is older than the theater with a circular space for the audience. In any case, it has been emphasized that the round shape was the preferred model since the period when democracy was introduced (i.e. since the fifth century BCE), and this form originated in Athens.

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Long-Time Experiences with Audiovisual Performance: The Pre-Greek Tradition of Theater

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  • 发表日期：

    2025年

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  • Harald Haarmann

摘要

The ancient Greeks are credited for having invented the theater. This is true only in part. They did not invent the cultural activity of theatrical performance but they introduced special constructions for such performances. How has this to be understood? Among the pre-Greek institutions that impressed the Greeks were rituals and festive processions. The general term for ‘procession’ in ancient Greek is thiasos, an expression of pre-Greek origin. In light of the intensive social interaction of native Europeans and ancient Greeks it is not surprising that the pre-Greek ritual heritage, too, had an impact on the formative process of Greek civilization. Rituals are at the very core of the functioning of culture. All cultures of the world, whether historical or recent, operate with a certain category of behavioral strategies that enhance in-group solidarity, maintain the rigidity of the knowledge obtained from previous generations, and reassure the sustainability of society. There is consensus among scholars that ritual preceded theater, that ritualistic performance provides the mind frame for the reworking of eternal human matters (i.e. love, hatred, liberty, power, death) projected into the fictional world of theater. If this is true, then it is reasonable to assert that theater is ritualistic healing and that the impression of a play goes far beyond entertainment, for example, with the experience of ”drama as therapy”. The sixth century BCE (before common era) saw a breaking away from older ritual traditions and a remodeling of cultural life. The major occurrence was the separation of the theatrical performances from the organization of the processions that continued to be held. The ancient Greeks created an innovation. They separated theatrical performances from religious processions and transferred such performances to separate precincts. And for the audience that gathered special constructions were built: theaters. It is not clear whether the rectangular shape of theaters is older than the theater with a circular space for the audience. In any case, it has been emphasized that the round shape was the preferred model since the period when democracy was introduced (i.e. since the fifth century BCE), and this form originated in Athens.