CLASSICAL GREEK s THEATRE STUDIES IN THEATRE HISTORY & CULTUREUniversity of Iowa Press, Lowa City 52242 Copyright © 1999 by the University of Jowa Press All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America Design by Richard Hendel http:// www.uiowa.edu/~uipress No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, without permission in writing from the publisher. All reasonable steps have been taken to contact copyright holders of material used in this book. The publisher would be pleased to make suitable arrangements with any whom it has not been possible to reach. Printed on acid-free paper Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Ashby, Clifford, Classical Greek theatre: new views of an old subject / by Clifford Ashby. p.m, — (Studies in theatre history and culture) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-87745-641-0 1. Theater—Greece—Production and direction—History. 2, Theaters—Greece—History. 3. Theater—Greece—History. I. Title. IL. Series. PA3201.A79 1998 792'.0938—dear 98-38376, 99 00 of 02 0) C5 4321CONTENTS Acknowledgments xi Preface xiii 1_The Limits of Evidence 1: The Writings 1 2 The Limits of Evidence 1: Physical Remains 15 3. The Shape of the Orchestra: A History and Critique 24 4 Where Was the Altar? 42 5. The Scene House: The Dithyramb, Found Space, and the “Royal” Door 62 6 Stage Machinery 81 7 The Ori f Greek Theatres 97 8 Dawn Performances: Three Days in a Row? 118 9 Ramifications of the Three-Actor Rule_128 10 Validation by Authority: Margarete Bieber’s Comparisons of Hellenistic and Roman Theatres 139 n Validation by Repetition: The Menander Reliefs 147 12. Validation (and Discovery) by Experiment: Producing a Three-Actor Jon 165 Bibliography 181 Index 187