Similarities To The Greek Theatre example essay topic

647 words
The Greek theatre is a crucial part of architectural history and how sporting venues are built today. The theatre provided entertainment to the citizens of Greece just as sports arenas do today. For example, the existence of the SkyDome in Toronto, Ontario, relies heavily on the Greek theatre and how it was constructed. The Greek theatre took shape in the late fifth century. It is made up of four basic parts. First, is the skene, which was a structure built in the background that would house props, costumes, and dressing rooms.

The next part of the theatre is the proskenion. This was built in front of the skene as a backdrop facade. It was not used for a stage and was one-story in height. The third part is the orchestra. This area was designated for the singers, dancers, and dramatic action. The shape of the orchestra was circular.

The last part of the theatre is seating for the audience which is called the auditorium. The ring of seats were cut into the side of a hillside providing optimal viewing for a mass of people. The theatre brought forth entertainment for the citizens of Greece. The stories of love and tragedy provided excitement and joy to the audience. Also the theatre was a celebration of religion and civic beliefs. These celebrations were attended to by everyone.

They tended to be poetic and musical. The profound religious feeling of the Greeks for the earth and sky was highly shown in the theatre. The greatest theatrical performances hoped to contest with the natural spectacles. The SkyDome in Toronto, opened in 1989, is one of the most famous stadiums of all time. Its fully retractable roof makes it a stand out venue. But, there are many similarities to the Greek theatre.

When the SkyDome is set up for a concert, there are four basic parts to construction. First is the backstage, which is a building, built on the rear of the stage for dressing rooms. In front of that is the stage. The stage is set up very high so everyone can see.

Next is the floor seating. The floor seats are set very close to the stage in order to obtain the most personal experience. The last part of the SkyDome is the general seating section. The general seating is made up of five different sections.

They are the Esplanade, which is from ground level up to the club level, Club level, 110 Amenity SkyBokes on two levels and the Sky Deck. The seats are arranged similar to that of the Greek theatre. The seats are built in tiers and in a circular pattern around the stage and can hold about 33,000 people. The SkyDome is a big economic contribution to Toronto. It houses two professional sports teams that bring in huge revenues. Also many concerts are performed there adding to the financial wealth of the city.

The citizens of Toronto are also affected by the SkyDome. It provides entertainment to the people just as the theatre did to the people of Greece. The classic Greek theatre paved the way for the future of architecture. The parts of the SkyDome are very similar to that of the Greek theatre. With the auditorium relating to the general seating and the skene relates to the backstage. Concerts performed on stage in the dome are just like the ones performed in the theatre.

The singers and dancers perform on the stage to the many thousand spectators seated circularly around the stage. Thus, the existence of the Greek theatre proves to be a very crucial part of architecture today.