Greek Theatre Masks Two

#greekcomedy #thalia #theatremasks

The Muse of Comedy looking at one of the masks used  by male actors.

At least we think most actors were male however the Romans allowed female performers in what they called pantomime and given the diversity of the empire I suspect sooner or later a mosaic or fresco featuring an actress will turn up.

and perhaps the young lady used as a model for this was contemplating writing for the theatre ?

Aristophanes - The Hoopoe Serenade Part One

#aristophanes #greekcomedy #song #hoopoe

This post has 2 parts first the Greek Text with a transliterations into
and then next part translation and notes
The transliteration is there to give non Greek readers a rough idea of how it sounds!
Bear in mind that th kh and ph are aspiratd t k and p not fricatives!
 Meter in Greek mean the lines do not have to have an equal length of syllables, and vowel length and pitch are factors too!

Aristophanes' Birds

The Hoopoe's Serenade Lls 209-222

ἄγε σύννομέ μοι παῦσαι μὲν ὕπνου,

age sunnome moi pausai men hupnou

λῦσον δὲ νόμους ἱερῶν ὕμνων,

luson de nomous hieroon 

οὓς διὰ θείου στόματος θρηνεῖς,

hous dia theiou stomatos threeneis 

τὸν ἐμὸν καὶ σὸν πολύδακρυν Ἴτυν

ton emon kai son poludakrun itun 

ἐλελιζομένη διεροῖς μέλεσιν

elelisdomenee dierois melesin 

γένυος ξουθῆς.

genuos ksouthees

καθαρὰ χωρεῖ διὰ φυλλοκόμου

kathara khoorei dia phullokomou 

σμίλακος ἠχὼ πρὸς Διὸς ἕδρας,

smilakos eekhoo pros dios hedras 

ἵν̓ ὁ χρυσοκόμας Φοῖβος ἀκούων

hin ho khrusokomas phoibos akouoon 

τοῖς σοῖς ἐλέγοις ἀντιψάλλων

tois sois elegois antiphalloon

ἐλεφαντόδετον φόρμιγγα θεῶν

elephantodeton phormigga theoon 

ἵστησι χορούς. διὰ δ᾿ ἀθανάτων

histeesi khorous dia d'athanatoon 

στομάτον χωρεῖ ξύμφωνος ὁμοῦ

stomaton khoorei ksumphoonos homou 

θεία μακάρων ὀλολυγή.

theia makaroon ololugee

The Ancient scholia imply the background music to this includes at least one flute perhaps more?

Next time the translation !

Aristophanes Three - the Median Bird.

#aristophanes #birds #greekcomedy #chickens #roosters

Aristophanes is one of the first if not the first Western writers to mention Roosters.

Line 275

EEE Zeus another truly outlandish bird is here
the next line about muse-prophet summit travelling bird is probably a parody of an other dramatist

Chickens were relatively new to Greece, not quite as exotic as peacocks but still regarded as ...foreign.

The Hoopoe King calls him a Median bird. Median was used interchangeably with Persian.

Chickens had already reached Egypt and the Near East.

Lines 482 >>

One character argues that Persians were ruled by Roosters and compares the King of Kings tiara to a roosters crest ...also that the Rooster was one of the Birds that once ruled the world and further proof is still the roosters morning song awakes workers, smiths, potters, and others.

Do try to look up the greek text, maybe in a Loeb, if your Greek is limited, and sound out the text.

It sounds so much more poetic in Greek !

Aristophanes Birds Two - Why a Hoopoe?

#aristophanes #birds #greek comedy #hoopoe

So Why is a Hoopoe one of the leading Characters in the Birds?

Personal Photo of an Old Hans Hvass illustration
Since the book its in was printed in the 1960s it may or may not be public domain?

Note the Hoopoe a bird with a large reddish crest and also the subject of a play by Sophocles no longer extant.

Note the scholia by the ancients claims Aristophanes was referring to a play by Sophocles called the Tereus.

Line 93 o heracles what kind of beast is this here? and what plumage what style of triple cresting?

then Line 100  Sophocles play is mentioned and the humans ask where are your feathers.

It looks like Sophocles actor worn a costume with crested headgear and beaked mask but no feathers elsewhere 

I suspect Aristophanes had his costumiers create an exaggerated copy of this as in line 102 Terues is asked if he's a bird or peacock and Tereus explains all his feathers apart from his crest have moulted.

I wonder if Aristophanes got a hold of some moulted peacock feathers and used them in the play as part of the triple crest?

However another reason for using a Hoopoe is the Greek myth that his wife was turned into a nightingale giving us the beautiful Serenade to the Nightingale Lines 209 >>

which will be a subject for another post.

Since we normally read ancient plays we forget the playwrights were usually also the directors and were awarded for a combination of set design lyrics dances music dialogue and costume!

Next time Median birds 

Greek Verse that Rhymes!

RHYME AND RHYTHM IN GREEK VERSE

Rhyme does get used sometimes in Greek Verse.

Here's a sample from a lost comedy The Cyclops by Antiphanes a quote preserved in Deipnosophistae vii. 295 cited to show off fish names. Do try reading the Greek out aloud.

Ἔστω δ̛ ἡμῖν κεστρεὺς τμητός,

νάρκη πνικτή, πέρκη σχιστή,

τευθὶς σακτή, συνόδων ὀπτός,

γλαύκου προτομή, γόγγρου κεφαλή,

βατράχου γαστήρ, θύννου λαγόνες,

βατίδος νῶτον, κέστρας ὀσφύς,

ψητταρικίσκος,μαινίς, καρίς,

τρίγλη, φυκίς.

Τῶν τοιούτων μηδὲν ἀπέστω.

...and let there be a sliced mullet, a stewed electric ray, a split perch,

a stuffed squid, a baked smooth tooth,

the first cut of a grey fish (kind of mullet) thh head of a conger ell,

the belly of a fishing frog, the flanks of a tunny,

back of a ray, loin of a spet fish,

a mite of a sole, a sprat, a shrimp,

a red mullet and a wrasse.

Let none of such kind of things be absent.