The Theatre of Dionysus lies at the foot of the Acropolis, and was the first real theater in the world.
For the Greeks, the theater was the place where citizens would gather to take part in the presentation of the great enigmas that concerned everyday life.
It was Peisistratos who introduced the celebrations in 540 BC in honor of Dionysus, the god of wine and inebriation, which involved not only choral singing and dancing, but also theatrical performances in which the authors presented their works to the public, who judged them on their merits.
The first performances took place in the Agora, the main public area of the city; perhaps following an accident, however, the decision was taken to make use of the slope of the hillside of the Acropolis to build a theater with wooden terracing and a curtain for the backdrop of the stage, near a temple dedicated to Dionysus. The chorus sang and interacted in a circular space in the center, known as the orchestra. Behind the chorus was the stage, reserved for the actors, while 17,000 spectators could watch the performance from the tiers.
It was here that all the great theatrical works by Aeschylus, Euripides and Sophocles, as well as the comedies by Aristophanes and Menander, were performed for the first time.
Over the years, stone tiers were added, but the general appearance of the Theater of Dionysus today largely dates to the time of the Athenian statesman Lykourgos, around 330 BC. Lykourgos restructured it in monumental style, with a permanent stage built in stone, as well as doors, columns and windows, to give it the appearance of a palace. A three-tiered seating area called the theatron was also added, which was reserved for the nobility.
The Hellenistic period saw the addition of 67 marble thrones around the orchestra, with the names of the authorities they were reserved for written on them. At the center of this row of seats, there was a larger one, reserved for the priest of Dionysus. The marble seats we can see today are, however, believed to be copies: the theater underwent significant renovation work in Roman times.
Let me leave you with an interesting fact: in the Roman age, the orchestra was not used for theatrical performances, but for miniature naval battles.
