Episodes
Nov. 30, 2020
Stages, Scenery, Props and Politics
Episode 29 A look at the detail of the staging of Roman plays, including the use of the stage, scenery, masks, props and costume. How wall paintings and sculpture may give us some useful insights into Roman theatre. The posi…
Nov. 23, 2020
Later Rome: Theatre Finds a Home
Episode 28 Theatre gets its first permanent home in Rome as Pompey builds a theatre to his own glory. The story of how he was able to do that is one of wealth, pride deception and not a little ego. Support the podcast at: ww…
Nov. 16, 2020
Early Rome: Theatre Gets Mobile
Episode 27 Theatre buildings in Rome developed over the long period of time from the Etruscan Period and through the republican period, but throughout they were temporary structures albeit on an ever grander scale. In this e…
Nov. 9, 2020
From Greek to Roman – Part 2
Episode 26 In the second part of the introduction to the theatre of Rome the Greek influence becomes more obvious and we start to get some details about the playwrights of the time. Taking this overview through to the beginn…
Nov. 2, 2020
From Greek to Roman – Part 1
Episode 25 Season 2 of the podcast begins with an overview of the transition from Greek Theatre to Roman Theatre with the history of the early Roman Republic and the early forms of theatre, starting at 364 BCE and taking us …
Oct. 5, 2020
Greek Conclusions Part 2
Episode 24 In the final episode on the story of Greek Theatre a further fleshing out of three big subjects in Ancient Greek theatre - The Mask, The Theatre Buildings and The audience. The podcast will then take a short break…
Sept. 28, 2020
Greek Conclusions Part 1
Episode 23 In the penultimate episode on the story of Greek Theatre a look at the final years of Greek tragedy and comedy and the Athenian festivals. Then some thoughts on the development of Mime as a dramatic form and notes…
Sept. 24, 2020
The Satyr Play: Just for Laughs?
Episode 22 The Satyr play is one of the most enigmatic elements of Ancient Greek drama and we have few surviving examples of it. A look at the stories it told, its development and it's place in the story of Ancient Greek the…
Sept. 21, 2020
Fragments of Menander
Episode 21 A look at three substantial fragments of Menander's plays as they have come to us through the centuries. This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy
Sept. 14, 2020
The Misanthrope: Sole Survivor
Episode 20 A look at the only surviving complete play by Menander and our only full representative of the genre of new comedy. This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.…
Sept. 7, 2020
From Old to New and Menander
Episode 19 The Hellenistic world moves on into a period of domination first by Sparta and then by Macedon, but theatre survives and thrives as New Comedy. Our view of how that development progressed is entwined with the life…
Aug. 31, 2020
Lysistrata: Women On Top
Episode 18 Perhaps the best known of the comedies by Aristophanes Lysistrata imagines a world where women take control in an attempt to force and end the Peloponnesian war. It is sex comedy with a message as the Athenian gol…
Aug. 24, 2020
The Wasps: Legal Laughter
Episode 17 Aristophanes takes a dig at the Athenian legal system and the city leaders who use it to their own ends. The system was part of the democratic process that Athens was still hanging on to despite the rigours of the…
Aug. 17, 2020
The Clouds: Serious Comedy
Episode 16 Aristophanes took a wry look at the art of philosophy that had become very trendy in Athens. In particular he pokes fun at Socrates and his philosophical method as a father and son try to escape their mounting deb…
Aug. 10, 2020
Aristophanes: Comedy, Satire, War
Episode 15 The story of the life, times and plays of Aristophanes, the creator of the only complete plays that we have from the genre of 'old comedy'. He lived in Athens during the turbulent times of the Peloponnesian war an…
Aug. 3, 2020
The Bacchae: Dionysus Is Coming Home
Episode 14 Dionysus takes centre stage in a fantasy of mad women and cross dressing kings. The last and strangest play by Euripides it was a return to tragedy by this ever inventive poet, but unlike anything else that had be…
July 27, 2020
Electra: A Touch Of Realism
Episode 13 A deep dive into the Euripides version of the story of Electra and her revenge on her mother. Euripides gets down to a more human level while still injecting passages of polemic, but we can also start to get eleme…
July 20, 2020
Medea: Beware a Woman Scorned
Episode 12 A deep dive into one of Euripides' greatest plays. Is it pure melodrama, a polemic on the rights and treatment of women, or one of the greatest tragedies ever written? As ever Euripides splits opinion. This podcas…
July 13, 2020
Euripides: An Outspoken Life
Episode 11 A summary of the life and times of Euripides, the youngest and most daring of the three great Greek tragedians, but who suffered from a mixed reception in his own time. This podcast uses the following third-party …
July 6, 2020
Oedipus at Colonus: Death of a Hero?
Episode 10 The story of the death of Oedipus was Sophocles' last work and puts the role of the Greek hero into a new light. We travel to Colonus, the home town of the playwright, to see the end of Oedipus' troubled life. Thi…
June 29, 2020
Let’s Talk About Oedipus
Episode 9 We travel back into the heart of the Oedipus myth with Sophocles' interpretation of this dark story. Seen by many as his greatest work it is a dark tale of unwitting patricide and incest that relentlessly leads to …
June 22, 2020
Antigone: Nomos Vs Physis
Episode 8 A detailed look at the first of the Theban plays by Sophocles. Greek drama gets personal as the end of a great family drama is acted out, but it's also a political debate as Sophocles questions what happens when ma…
June 15, 2020
Sophocles: That Charming Man
Episode 7 The life of Sophocles almost spanned the 5th Century BCE and included events from the defeat of the Persian invasion to the relentless grind of the Peloponnesian wars. We look at his life and times and get an overv…
June 8, 2020
The Oresteia part 2
Episode 6 A detailed review of The Libation Bearers and Eumenides, the second and third part of The Oresteia trilogy by Aeschylus This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartab…