Countdown to Christmas
20 - Theater
People have been enthusiastic about theater performances since ancient times. Various forms have developed in different cultures. What they have in common is that they address people's thoughts and feelings in a comprehensive way through texts, performance practice and, in many cases, music and stage design.
The great German playwright and poet Friedrich Schiller described the theater as a school of morality. Therein lies its enduring significance: relationships between people, ethical and political problems are illustrated in the action on stage and brought to people's attention. This is how important debates, enthusiasm, anger and other emotions are stimulated.
Magnificent buildings were erected in many places for the performance of plays. Professional actors, but also many amateurs, transform themselves to play certain roles that together make up a play.
Inventors
The theater in its present form originated in ancient Greece, around 2500 years ago. Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides are well known playwrights of this time. Drama, Tragedy and Comedy, the major forms of plays, have there origins in ancient Greece as well.
Christmas and the quiet time associated with it gives me the opportunity to spend more time than usual with art and culture - including theater. It's a time to take a step back from many things, to reflect. Theater, like music and literature, offers wonderful inspiration for this.
