Greek and Brechtian Drama

Western drama as we know it today began in ancient Greece and has its roots in ancient ritual. The dramas, which were usually in the form of comedy or tragedy, were performed outside in open-air amphitheaters. The location of the theater was very important as to gain better acoustics they were built on the slope of a hill; this also allowed a capacity crowd of 10000- 20000 people to gain the best possible view of the stage. There was a raised earth platform which served as a stage and behind it was a wooden structure with three large entrance doors; also known as a skene this tent was the actor's backstage area and allowed for costume changes and prop storage. The backdrop of the play was also propped up upon the skene.

The technical aspects concerning the two types of theatre are on quite the opposite scale to props. Greek dramas are kept very simple as making intricate technical aspects accessible to the entire audience would have been very difficult. The use of masks, however, did enter most productions and the workings of the deus ex machina and the eccyclema were detailed. Brechtian theatre on the other hand involved a varied array of technical aspects, to explain messages or reinforce ideas. Some of the techniques included slides, audio, pre-recorded footage, and live music. As the audience of a Brechtian production was small compared to a Greek one such technical aspects worked to a great advantage. These aspects were also influenced by the technology available to the different times; however that aside Brechtian theatre utilised the technique largely. Technical aspects are much easier to convey to a more intimate audience as in Brechtian theatre than to a large Greek audience.

The end result of all the hard work behind making a play is the performance and each of the elements already mentioned contribute to this directly. Greek and Brechtian performances are almost direct opposites. The movements of the actors in Greek dramas are big and accentuated so that the people in the last row of an amphitheater containing 20000 seats can understand the action; a Greek actor must involve his entire body in the performance and on many occasions acrobatics feature largely. Characters in an ancient Greek play are larger than life and driven mainly on their emotions. The chorus is a main feature as they provide the singing in which much of the story line is revealed. The actions of Brechtian actors are harsh and realistic seeking not to identify with the audience but to remain as distant as possible and to "Demonstrate not imitate" (Key Terms and Definitions p 6.) It is common for Brechtian actors to break character and address the audience directly and in this w!

Many elements determined by the type of stage available influenced the way in which each style of drama was presented. The form of the performances were determined by such elements as lighting, props and the technical aspects, whereas content involved the areas of plot, the issues raised and performance. The size of the

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