Origin and History
of
DRAMA
What is Drama?
The term ‘drama’ comes from an ancient Greek verb meaning ‘to do’ or ‘to act’, and this is when
it all began for the tradition.
Two Types of Drama
There were originally thought to be two types of drama:
●Comedy
●Tragedy
Earliest Classical Greek Influences
Yet another genre of drama produced by ancient
Greece was a satire, or satyr play.
Ancient Greek theater would have been very
dramatic (almost like a pantomime), consisting of a
Greek chorus, costumes, theatrical masks, and other
ritual characteristics all of which would have been
staged in an open air setting.
If you hear anything along the lines of Agamemnon,
Antigone, Agon, Apollo, Aristotle, Athenian, Attica,
Bacchae, Epidaurus, Eumenides, Dionysus, Oedipus
The King, Prometheus Bound, Parados, Perseus,
Dithyrambic, Iphigenia, Seven Against Thebes,
Lysistrata, Orestes, Peloponnesian, Parados, Plato,
Socrates, Cyclops, Plautus, Thespis, Zeus, the list really
does go on and on! And all have their own links to
ancient world plays by way of mythology, Greek gods,
Greek empire, a representation of religion or Greek
society and culture. Greek theatre would have painted
a picture of the legendary Greek empire.
The most significant playwrights of
Greek tragedies are:
● Aeschylus
● Sophocles
● Euripides
● Aristophanes
● Menander.
The first three dramatists(Aeschylus, Sophocles,
Euripides )are commonly referred to as tragedians
While the two latter lyricists(, Aristophanes and
Menander.) were seen as comic writers. If you have
read a Greek tragedy as part of one of your educational
courses or because you are drawn to the suspense, you
will be familiar with the chorus, or group of people,
who commentate on the story as it unfolds.
Roman Influences
Rome was introduced to Greek drama and
Greek comedy around 250 BCE, and many
Romans reworked the original plays, dividing
the stories into episodes, removing the choruses
and replacing them with a musical element like
an orchestra, or having them singing.
The Roman times were still influenced by Greek gods
and mythological Greek culture, but Roman theatre
was equally expressive of themes significant to
Rome, Sicily and society in Italy in general, as well
as classical literature and religious rites.
Performances would have been composed of
Venetian masks, ceremonial dancing and stylized
with a range of facial expressions.
Medieval And Renaissance Drama
Hundreds of years after the first ever creations of
tragedy and comedy, Medieval Drama brought
something totally new to theatre, in a move away from
reworking older styles. With the Christian Church
originally opposing theatre, seeing it as controversial,
religious holiday stories and scenarios from the Bible
naturally started to be performed by leaders of the
churches, and eventually, these performances became
more elaborate and moved to other parts of the
community (i.e. the stage).
Religious personalities winded up performing scenes
from the bible.
The Christian church originally opposed theatre.
Elizabethan drama developed during the Renaissance
period thanks to a rejuvenated celebration of all types
of art. The first ever Elizabethan playhouse opened
around this time and plays by famous playwrights
(like the acclaimed William Shakespeare, of course)
were performed regularly across the country. His plays
were more structural than had ever been seen before,
and represented comedy tragedy combined to give
well-rounded performances offering something for
everyone.
Classes were very much divided in the 18th century,
and writers drew on this in their texts. Many plays
were therefore written for and about the middle class,
moving away from the outdated themes that were
covered by Shakespeare and his peers. Plays played on
the battle of the sexes and were witty and humorous.
18th And 19th Century Drama
In the 19th century, Romanticism in Western Europe
was born and focused on emotion and spiritualism,
heavily influencing drama of the period. Romantic
plays began to dominate the continent, with famous
writers like Faust and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
becoming hugely popular.
Modern Drama
Modern drama is what we would call many of the plays
that emerged from the 20th century onwards, which
developed due to further experimentation. Music
played a big part in modern drama, while realistic
drama was also increasingly popular. For some,
though, this seemed a step too far from the origins of
drama and theatre and they wanted the art to be
revitalised once more.
Symbolist drama took over from the outdated classical
performances.
Symbolist drama became a preferred style of
performing, particularly in France. This made way for a
Symbolist movement, particularly in France, in the
1880s.
Texts became suggestive and almost dream-like.
Chekhov and Ibsen are good examples of masters of
strong Symbolist drama.
The Expressionist movement came about in the early
1900s and was darker and more grotesque, exploring
the depths of the human psyche, turning stage shows
into more like nightmares!
Finally, contemporary playwrights of the 1960s and 70s
began to focus more heavily on language and dialogue,
with Tom Stoppard for one being a very important
writer of the time.
This brings us to the 21st century, and theatre as we
know it today.
There are numerous 21st century dramatists and playwrights
actively writing today, yet many stage actors are still
representing characters from classical plays, at times with a
modern twist. Musical theatre is also a very prominent scene.
In a world that is obsessed with fantasy, many of the dramas
that are turned into TV adaptations are linked to escapism yet
we are all just as interested in the realism of other people’s
lives, hence why reality television is so popular in modern
society.
The variety of different types of drama in modern times means
that there is also a lot of room for different styles of acting.
Drama On The Curriculum
In the UK, children up to the age of five are taught using methods
that involve play, thus Drama is taught within the English curriculum
at this early stage and through to Key Stage 4 as part of Speaking and
Listening elements. The Spoken language section of the curriculum
states that all pupils should be enabled to participate in and gain
knowledge, skills and understanding associated with the artistic
practice of drama. Pupils should be able to adopt, create and sustain a
range of roles, responding appropriately to others in role. They should
have opportunities to improvise, devise and script drama for one
another and a range of audiences, as well as to rehearse, refine, share
and respond thoughtfully to drama and theatre performances.Pupils
could be missing out on valuable learning tools if Drama is not offered
at their school.Schools are lacking in Drama facilities because of low
numbers for the creative arts. This means, therefore, that Drama is
part of the statutory National Curriculum, yet many in the industry
feel that this art should have more weight and be taught as a
mandatory subject through to Year 11.
The above makes it clear that Drama plays a key role in
learning, and that children should be enabled to express
themselves through theatre and performance. With no
Drama facilities and otherwise use-able budgets being
spent in other areas of schools, this means that centres
which don’t offer Drama (and even some of those who)
aren’t giving their pupils the opportunities they require and
are promised by the Department of Education to learn
through role-play, understanding how to put together
performances on a stage and standing up in front of an
audience.
Furthermore, as a result of the decline in uptake of subjects
like Drama, teacher training centres for the subject matter
are getting harder to come by.
DRAMA should be preserved until
the next generations
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