Ancient theatre of Taormina
   HOME

TheInfoList



Click Here for Items Related To - Ancient theatre of Taormina
OR:
Ancient theatre of Taormina on:   [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Amazon]

The ancient theatre of Taormina ( it, Teatro antico di Taormina) is an ancient
Greek theatre Ancient Greek theatre was a theatrical culture that flourished in ancient Greece from 700 BC. The city-state of Athens, which became a significant cultural, political, and religious place during this period, was its centre, where the theatre w ...
in
Taormina Taormina ( , , also , ; scn, Taurmina) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Messina, on the east coast of the island of Sicily, Italy. Taormina has been a tourist destination since the 19th century. Its beaches on ...
, Sicily, built in the third century BC.


History

A Hellenistic theatre stood at Taormina from around the third century BC. The remains of another Hellenistic building have been found under the Roman cavea. Under Roman rule, the theatre was rebuilt, probably around the time of
Hadrian Hadrian (; la, Caesar Trâiānus Hadriānus ; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. He was born in Italica (close to modern Santiponce in Spain), a Roman ''municipium'' founded by Italic settlers in Hispania ...
or
Trajan Trajan ( ; la, Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 539/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared ''optimus princeps'' ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presi ...
. It was remodelled in the third century AD, with the orchestra turned into an arena and the stage removed.


Description

The ancient
theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perfor ...
had a diameter of and could hold around 10,000 spectators. It is one of the oldest theatres in
Magna Graeca Magna Graecia (, ; , , grc, Μεγάλη Ἑλλάς, ', it, Magna Grecia) was the name given by the Romans to the coastal areas of Southern Italy in the present-day Italian regions of Calabria, Apulia, Basilicata, Campania and Sicily; these r ...
to have curved ''cavea'', rather than the older trapezoidal design. The ''cavea'' were divided into nine sections. On either side of the ''skene'' was a
basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its nam ...
. Today, the theatre is used as a venue for the annual arts festival
Taormina Arte Taormina ( , , also , ; scn, Taurmina) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Messina, on the east coast of the island of Sicily, Italy. Taormina has been a tourist destination since the 19th century. Its beaches on ...
. File:Sicilia Taormina2 tango7174.jpg, File:Taormina BW 2012-10-05 16-23-06.JPG, File:Taormina-amphi1.JPG, File:TaorminaFilmFest 2003.jpg, File:Taormina Greek Theater Sepia.jpg, File:Ancient theatre of Taormina.jpg,


See also

*
List of ancient Greek theatres This is a list of ancient Greek theatres by location. Attica and Athens *Theatre of Dionysus, Athens * Odeon of Athens, Athens * Theatre of Oropos, Oropos, East Attica * Theatre of Zea, Piraeus, Athens * Theatre of Thoricus, East Attica * Theatre ...
* Greek Theatre of Syracuse * History of Taormina


References


External links


View at 360° of Teatro antico di Taormina


{{DEFAULTSORT:Theatre Antique D'orange
Taormina Taormina ( , , also , ; scn, Taurmina) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Messina, on the east coast of the island of Sicily, Italy. Taormina has been a tourist destination since the 19th century. Its beaches on ...
Taormina Taormina ( , , also , ; scn, Taurmina) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Messina, on the east coast of the island of Sicily, Italy. Taormina has been a tourist destination since the 19th century. Its beaches on ...
Theatres in Sicily Taormina 7th-century BC establishments in Italy Archaeological sites in Sicily