5/3/07 - Classical Literature - New Comedy in Rome

Romans invented a form of drama in the 4th century BC due to superstition and religion.

"In 364 and 363 BC there was a plague ... so powerful that neither human skill nor divine intervention could lessen its effects. As one way of appeasing the gods, and giving way to their own superstitious fears, the Romans began to hold stage-shows - an entirely new idea for this warlike people, whose only entertainment until then had been that of the Circus. These shows, like most first attempts, were on a small scale - and they were imported from outside Rome. There was no singing; where were no gestures imitating singers. Dancers were invited from Etruria and performed grave dances in Etruscan style, to flue accompaniment. Soon young Romans began imitating them, at the samt time making crude jokes in cross-talk style, fitting movement and words together. The idea caught on, and was kept up by frequent repetition. The Roman performers wer given the name histriones, from the Etruscan ister, their word for ludio (player). Soon they gave up their rough-and-ready cross-talk in the Fescennine style, and instead performed entertainment (saturae) in mixed meters, with songs an dances carefully worked out to suit the flute player."
[Livy 7.2]

Fecennine verse was the mixture of one Etruscan city and the word for 'black magic'. None of the performances were written down, so nothing was fixed, a little like improv. theatre. Modern improv. only works if the actor never says no to a suggestion, so it is possible that this is what the Romans did. Romans might have borrowed conventions from other places in Italy, from Attelan plays. A host of standard characters had to be included in every play: Maccus - the fool or clown; Bucco - the greedy, boastful coward; Pappus - the silly old man; Dossennus - the clever cheat.

Terence's Eunuch was a response to political events of the time. It was produced in the 3rd century BC, when the Roman stage was hit by Greek comedy. The Senate paid for translations of Greek comedies. The Romans used drama to celebrate their defeat over the Carthaginians.

Livius Andronicus directed the festival and was paid by the Romans to do this. Naerius was successful in bringing Greek drama to the Roman theatre (approx. 207-1 BC), for after Andronicus he continued to translate Greek texts into Latin. Very little work survives, but there are over 30 titles of Greek plays in this oeuvre.

Literature was used as a response to political events. Rather than simply translating Greek texts, they had to be slightly altered to suit their new context and audience. The Romans were getting bold because they had some influence over Greece, which had at one time been considered the greatest empire in the world.

In his prologue, Terence admits he has used a Menander play, and also plays by Luscius Lanuvinus (The Phantom, The Treasure). Terence was accused of plagiarising two Roman characters, but it was acceptable to copy from a Greek play. Also, Terence borrows from more than one Greek play, which was probably common.

The prologue from Captives suggests that the audience needed to know the plot structure and ending to be able to follow the play's progress. Other dramatists did not like writing prologues.

Characters in Roman plays were played by a small number of actors (probably five). This may be due to the cost of employing actors.

The Pietrabbondatte was the first stone theatre in Italy. Outside of Rome, built around 200 BC. In 55 BC a theatre was built in Pompeii.