Life In Dithyrambic Chorus
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Life In Dithyrambic Chorus
Upon the setting sun I, Hecubus, fondly recall the days of pride and honor I
felt in my tribe, as a member of a dramatic, dithyrambic chorus. Acting was not
simply my occupation, but a lifestyle highly revered and respected by my fellow
Athenian citizens. We entertained, taught moral lessons of the past, illustrated
human flaw, but most importantly, we gave the audience a release. During the
time I preformed with my chorus, drama was closely tied to the polis, joining
the people, the government, and the Gods through public festivals. I felt
immense pride to have played and active role in the community bond that was
created. The most important of these festivals was, and remains, the City
Dionysia. The exhausting four-day competition was held every spring, in honor of
the god Dionysos (Amos and Lang 129). The festival opened with a formal and
elaborate processional, where I and my chorus of fifty men would perform
ceremonial dances at numerous alters, and ended with sacrifices of wine and
sweet meat at the sacred precinct of Dionysus. This was a most glorious event
surrounded in the beauty and rebirth of the land! A statue of Dionysos, guided
by the intense glow of torchlight, was then carried into the theatre and a
reenactment of Dionysos' initial entry into Athens was preformed. This statue
was a constant presence in the theatre. City Dionysia was highly attended and
drew visitors and men of political power from all of Greece. The crowd was not
afraid to get into the performances…many times they would cheer and boo, and
occasionally throw things at us. Three of the four days were reserved for
tragedies, and the fourth day was for satyr and comedies (Cameron and Gillespie
74). Between the great plays, the dithyrambic contests would be held, where the
choruses, including my dynamic troupe, would battle each other for the prize.
Wine was abundant, and the all day plays and hard stone benches seemed to effect
men's attitudes. Many times I found myself trying to sing passages over the
liveliness of the audience, but it was because of this festival that I became
commonly known in Athens. The origin of theatre dates back to religious choral
dances that were preformed in simple grain threshing circles. One member of the
chorus recited his verse or monologue with the other chorus members (Amos and
Lang 130). These primitive religious choruses resembled the organization of the
tragic chorus found in the festival. The tragic chorus served...
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