SM+Art&Entertainment+Greeks1


 * Greek A r t s and E n t e r t a i n m e n t **

= Entertainment =

**The Agora[[image:upper_agora.jpg width="350" height="274" align="right" caption="Agora by google images"]]**
The agora is a meeting and market place only for men and boys. Women would occasionally be seen outside of the house going to the water fountain to collect water. This is because women were not allowed to go outside the house excpet for this reason. The agora gives men and boys a chance to meet up with their friends and maybe play a few games. Agora is also the place where leader come to meet and communicate with the citizens for any discussions or election. Citizens were men who owned land, were above thirty and were not in the army. The agora is usually surrounded by other main buildings like the gymnasium and was usually built in the middle of the city or near a harbour. Agora is also a market place where you can sell or buy things. Farmers, merchants, painter, potters and slave sellers come to the agora to sell their produce. Ancient Greek men and boys could buy food, jewellery for the rich women, goods from other countries, paintings, statues, vases and slaves from the agora.

The Theatre(Theatron)
The first Greek plays were in honour of the god of wine, Dionysos. Later acts were performed for every religious holiday or event. Theatres were usually built on hills and usually seat 18,000 people. It is a very lively with an occasional chorus where the audience takes part in. Plays were either tragedy, comedy or satyr. Comedy and tragedy plays were usually based on famouse people. Comedy writers would most likely write a play to comment on some funny things about a famouse person. Tragedy play writers would write a play on a sad death or story of heroes and famouse people. Rich people are most likely to get the front twenty or so rows as they pay a reletively large amount for it. People who cannot afford to pay for the play were made to sit behind the rich. Ancient Greeks took picnics with them as if they left the theatre they are most likely to loose their seat. Actors performed the plays and are usually males. To project their voice so that the people at the back could understand what is happening actors were special masks with an opening for the mouth. This mask projected their voice and would usually show emotions which would tell people about the charecter. As men also had long hair it was easier for them to play a women with the mask to cover their male features.

Gymnasium
The gymnasium was a large exercise yard with change rooms, practice rooms and baths surrounding it. The Athenian men and especially Spartan men and women wanted healthy and tough bodies. Exercise would include wrestling, boxing, javelin, discus and many other sports. Men usually exercised naked and women wore less garments and had different rooms to exercise in. Gymnasiums were usually built around agoras and had equipment needed for the exercises. This inlcuded a running track and trainers.

**Games for Adults and Children**
The Ancient Greeks men and women enjoyed playing games. Some popular games were board games, a game similar to hockey, cottabos which is a party game that involves throwing the remains of a cup of wine on a target and knucklebones called astragali in ancient Greece with animal bones. These were the games they played along with having the entertainment of feasts and festivals. Boys and girls were given rattles, sticks, balls made out of clay, tops either made out of wood or clay, and wealthier children were given rolling hoops too. The children were also given dolls. These dolls were similar to puppets, having the main body part in different peices and then having them joined together with strings. So therefore children could move the dolls arms and legs and these dalls were made out of clay. This was for the wealthy children. Poorer children had dolls made out of reeds and rags with no movable parts. Ancient Greek children also playes with miniature charriots, rocking horses and clay animals. Many children had pets especially dogs but they could also have ducks, birds and other small animals as their pet.

**Feasts and Festivals**
Greeks created many stories on which festivals and religion are based on. The ancient Greeks had festivals according to the lunar calender so the dates are different at the present. The months in Ancient Greece are roughly called these approximately at these times: - Gamelion (January) - Anthesterion (February) - Elaphebolion (March) - Mounichion (April) - Thargelion (May) - Skirophorion (June) - Hekatombaion ( First month of the year)(July) - Metageitnion (August) - Boedromion (September) - Pyanopsion (October) - Maimakterion (November) - Poseideon (December)

**Festivals according to month:**
Lenea: A festival in honour of the god of wine, Dionysus Theogamia: The marriage of Zeusand Hera Anthesteria: A festival in honour of the god of wine, Dionysus Diasies: A festival in honour Zeus Great Dionysia: A 6 day feastival in honour of Dionysus Pandia: A festival in honour of Zeus Munichia: A festival held on the 16th of Mounichion to mark the victory of the Greeks on Persians and is in the honour of Artemis Olympeia: Brings entertainment to children Thargelia: A festival in honour of Apollo or Demeter Bendideia: In honour of the goddess Thracian and was created by the Athens Callynteria: No information Plynteria: A festival in honour of Athens Polias Arrephoria: Was an annual feast in honour of Pallas Athena Scira: A festival in honour of goddess Demeter Bouphonia: A festiva in honour of Zeus hed in Athens Kronia: Harvest festival Synoikia: No information Panathenea: A festival in honour of Athena Eleusina: A festival celebrated for 11 days Genesia: No information Democratia: Festival in honour of democracy Epidauria: Festival to honor Asclepius Proerosia: A first fruits agricultural festival. Puanepsia: Festival in honor of Apollo. Theseia: Festival in honor of Theseus. Oschophoria: A grape harvest festival. Stenia: A women’s festival in honor of Demeter and Persephone. Thesmophoria: A women’s festival in honor of Demeter. Apaturia: A celebration of the phratries which include rites of passage. Chalceia: Festival to honor Athena and Hephaestus. Pompaia: Festival honoring Zeus Rural Dionysia: (or Rustic Dionysia) Festival honoring Dionysus. Haloa: Fertility festival for Dionysus and Demeter
 * Gamelion (January)**
 * Anthesterion (February)**
 * Elaphebolion (March)**
 * Mounichion (April)**
 * Thargelion (May)**
 * Skirophorion (June)**
 * Hekatombaion ( First month of the year)(July)**
 * Metageitnion (August)**
 * Boedromion (September)**
 * Pyanopsion (October)**
 * Maimakterion (November)**
 * Poseideon (December)**

**Music and Dance**
Not much is known about the ancient Greek music like how it sounds unlike other civilisations. We know little from the paintings, artefacts and folk songs. The ancient Greeks played music for marriages, festivals, rituals and for entertainment at home. Poetry was also considered as a type of music. They thought the Nine Muses gave them the gift of music. Music was also a main subject in the education of the children. Lyra was originally called the Chelys because it was a tortoise shell used as a sound box. It is said that this instrument was created by god Hermes. Today we do not know how many strings the lyra originally had but it had seven strings before. Then an additional string was added later on. After some more time there were nine to twelve strings. The strings were made of either animal guts, linen or hemp. This instrument was used to educate children and amateur musicians. The Cithara is plucking instrument and originally had only five strings. Later on it had twelve strings and was used in concerts and performances. It was bigger than the lyra and was mostly played by profesional musicians. Other instruments like the guitar had teir names coming form the word cithara. Barbithos is in the same instrument family as a lyra. It only had a narrower and longer sound box. Epigonion has the larger number of srtings and could go upto forty strings.Its name comes from the fact that it is played on the knee, which in greek is 'epi gonu'. It may also be that its inventors name is Epigonus. It is also called trichord because it has three strings. It is long and has a reletively large sound box.
 * Lyra:**
 * Cithara:**
 * Barbitos:**
 * Epigonion:**
 * Pandouris:**

Dance was very important to the Greeks. Men and women never danced together. There were some dances for men and some dances were for women. Dances were accompanied by instruments like the lyres, fluted and other instruments. They believed that dance improved both physical and mental health. There are more than two hundred types of dances. there are comic dances, warlike dances, dances for athletes, for funerals, weddings and religious purposes.

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