The Origins of Theater in Ancient Greece and Beyond
From Ritual to Drama

The most thorough examination of the evidence for the pre-history and origin of drama to date.

Eric Csapo (Edited by), Margaret C. Miller (Edited by)

9780521836821, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 15 January 2007

462 pages
26.2 x 18.6 x 2.9 cm, 1.138 kg

'Jane Harrison and the Cambridge Ritualists, early in the twentieth century, fixed firmly in our minds the view that drama developed out of religious ritual. But how did this happen? And is the view unassailable? This important book, consisting of seventeen essays that grew out of a colloquium, is the most thorough and wide-ranging attempt for surprisingly many years to address these and related questions.' Robin Waterfield, Heythrop Journal

The Origins of Theater in Ancient Greece and Beyond examines the evidence for the pre-history and origin of drama. The belief that drama developed from religious ritual has been commonplace since the time of Aristotle but there is little agreement on just how this happened. Recently, scholars have even challenged the historical connection between drama and ritual. This volume is the most thorough examination on the origins of Greek drama to date. It brings together seventeen essays by leading scholars in a variety of fields, including classical archaeology, iconography, cultural history, theater history, philosophy, and religion. Though it primarily focuses up on ancient Greece, the volume includes comparative studies of ritual drama from ancient Egypt, Japan, and medieval Europe. Collectively, the essays show how the relationship of drama to ritual is one of the most controversial, complex, and multi-faceted questions of modern times.

1. General introduction E. Csapo and M. C. Miller
Part I. Komasts and Pre-Dramatic Ritual: 2. Introduction T. H. Carpenter
3. The corpus of Komast vases: from identity to exegesis T. J. Smith
4. Komasts, mythical imaginary and ritual C. Isler-Kerenyi
5. Let's hear it for the fat man: padded dancers and the prehistory of drama J. R. Green
6. Discussion T. H. Carpenter
Part II. Emergence of Drama: 7. Introduction and discussion G. Nagy
8. From hymn to tragedy: Aristotle's genealogy of poetic kinds D. Depew
9. Myths of ritual in Athenian vase-paintings of Silens G. Hedreen
10. From ritual to narrative M. Steinhart
11. 'And now all the world shall dance!' (Eur. Bacch. 114): Dionysus' choroi between drama and ritual B. Kowlazig
Part III. Comparing Other Cultures: 12. Introduction K. C. Patton
13. Ritual drama in an ancient Egypt R. J. Leprohon
14. Ritual and performance, dance and drama in ancient Japan G. Zobel
15. Representation in European devotional rituals: the question of the origin of medieval drama in medieval liturgy N. H. Petersen
16. Discussion K. C. Patton
Part IV. From Ritual to Drama: 17. From ritual to drama: a concluding statement R. Seaford.

Subject Areas: Ancient history: to c 500 CE [HBLA], Theatre studies [AN], History of art: ancient & classical art,BCE to c 500 CE [ACG]