Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1880-02-13

iidii'N Hill' iiIt
stretching across the building
ANCIENT ACTING.
Until IL complete theatre was discover
ed i'll Herculaneum an ancient theatre
could be described only by guesswork.
The two sides of the ancient theatres
We're so large that by-plays and low grada-
tons of voice were not attempted, and
the actors wore huge, thick-soled shoes
and tall masks so as to be distinguished
clearly from a great distance The dress
worn by ancient actors is stated to have
been derived from the gay costumes of
the worshippers of Bacchus. The Greek
scenery was awkward and limited When
the interior Of n room had to be shown,
Eschylus invented movable chamber
on wheels, which was pushed forward
when such action rs the murder scene in
"Agammemnon" was required to be
shown. The exterior change of scene
WAS effected by revolving doors i'll the
form of n triangular prism. The right
hand door represented the country road,
with the distance i'll perspective, while
the left hand door was understood TO rep
resent the road and town, with large OBJ
lects as il near at hand.
Stage tricks were practiced at the
Athenian theatres They could bring in
sea-gods riding on tailed horses, or
they could fly across the stage by means
of ropes and pullies; and many sky effects
were obtained by platform surrounded
by clouds. and suspended form the top of
the central scene, when deities had To
converse with the actors or the chorus
Thunder was initiated with bladdcrs full
of pebbles. which were rolled over sheets
of copper, while lightning was produced
by triangular prism Of mirrors in the
roof of the stage. From platform i'll
the orchestra Were two flights of steps
leading to n room below thcstagc They
were called ''Charon's stairs" and were
used by spectres from the lower world
and spirits of the dead
Schlegel, the German antiquarian,
says that Eschylus frequently used stage
machinery. In his ''Prometheus'' he
brought Oceanus through the air ON a
griffin, and suspended his whole choir of
10 nymphs in n winged chariot The fall
or burning of n house WAS often repre-
sentcd The curtain was not dropped,
but drawn upward.
In the Greek theatres the men and
women sat apart, and women were ex-
cluded when Hcentious comedies like
those Of Arlstophanes were performed
Occasionally the audience were rough
with missiles. Euripidcs would have
been pelted for passage i'll his Bel
lerophon, i'll which he praised the love
most that brought riches with it, but
when this sentiment had excited clamor
the actor sprang forward on the stage and
called tout: wait to the end. my
friends. He will meet with what he de
serves
THE ROMAN COLISEUM.
The coliseum i'll Rome, which oven i'll
ruins is one of the wonders and orna-
ments OF that great city. was commenced
by Nespasian, and completed by Titus
A. ID. 20. This enormous theatre oc-
cupicd only three years i'll its erection.
The coliseum, which is Of an oval form,
occupies the space Of nearly six acres
1t had no regular roof, but was covered |
with an awning, easily removable, which |
defended the spectators from sun or rain. |
spcctacles, of which it was |
the scene for nearly 100 years. were pre-
scented to audiences sometimes consisting
Of over Is, 900 persons, with seats arranS
ed according to their respective rank.
The coliseum probably was the model for
Inter theatres and amphitheatres.
ROMAN THE ATRICAIs.
In 3Oi B. c., dramatic exhibitions
were first introduced ut Rome because of
4 pestIlence which afflicted the city, and
IN order to appease divine wrath com