Theatre Design & Technology - Winter 1998 - 58

rO\r of gradients are those on the II·all. on which the highest
seats Irill have to be finished.;; They Irill be situated as far
from the center of the semicircle as one half the diameter of its
Door plus one third. The first gradiel1l of seats Irillnot begin
dO\m belOlr at the center of the orebes//'([ but at such a place
as I\"here a l\"all shall be erected Irhich in large theatres is one
nimh pan of half the diameter of the orebesl/'([ so that here
that the seats may begin and continue to rise. [n the smaller
theatres this I\"all is not Ie s than seren feet high. I would make
the gradients one and a half feet high and tiro and a half in
width.;"
,"aulted dirisions I\"ill be created bet\\een these gradiems.
in cenain places for entering into the orebes/ra, and in others.
stairs to ascend to the gradiems to sit that are rery high. of
II'hich there Irill be a sufficient number of these emrances and
stairs judged necessalY for the size of the theatre. But of these
entrances there I\"ill be sel'en principle ones Irhich lead directlr to the center. e\peditiously for ereryone, and which are
equallv spaced. one from the other. Of these, one Irider than
the others I\"ill be constructed in the middle of the semicircle.

3 . The roof over thefill/fiillllllwas coffered wood. creating a resonating
ound board and deflector for the voices of the actors. \"itnll'ius sal's
that resonating vases Ivere also placed betlveen the columns of the
panico (cirCIIlIIl"l/lla/ioll) around the back of the wrea to enhance
the voices of the actors.
39. BI' ··ours··. (llos/ril. Albeni refers to the btin theatre. Here and in the
following comparative descriptions of Greek and Latin theatres.
.~Ibeni b I'inuallv quoting \"itruviu .
iO. L1tin: /bet//ro relil/lfllebal//. Alberti distinguish - here betll-een seating
configurations in Rom;m ;md Greek theatres. In ;1 Roman theatre. the
sealing. or wrea coillinuei on both ides in straight lines from the semicircle and joins theji'Ol/s swel/ae. fanning a "1)" shaped ground plan.
In Greek theatres. the seating. or /bm/roll. continu - in acircle around
the orchestra. according to ;\Iberti. three quarters of the Circumference.
This. at least. is the theolY 11'1.' get from \itl11lius. Though Homan. or
Latin theatres. seem to be consistent in respect to the "1)" shaped ground
pl;m given bv \itl1J\ius. there are. in fact. considerable variations in the
ground plans of eXbling GI1'ek theatres.
i I. That is. the diameter of the orchestra. (or. more precisek the c!iameter of the full circle from Ilhieh it b deriled). is equal to the height
of the seating (C({rerll. from the paving of the orchestra to the top of
the uppermost gradient.
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TD&T

This one [ call the royal entrance since the roral way passes
through it. Then. another I\"ill be made at the head of the semicircle on the right and another at the head on the left. ;llld between these and the ramI emrance there I\"ill be more
entrances. t\\O on the left and tiro on the right. There mar be
as m:lllr other openings and passages as the circumference of
the theatre II ill allow.
.-\11 the gradients for 'eating in the large theatres of amiqui~' Irere separated imo three dirisions. [n each of these dirisions a gradient twice as Iride as the others wrapped around
from one side to the other. creating a landing place Irhich
separated the gradients abore from those below it and to
Irhich all the I'aulted stairs terminated. proriding access to the
gradients. I hare obserred that the best and most ingenious architects provided tll'O sets of stairs in the main emrances, one
more steep and direct for the voung and agile and another,
more broad and easy Il'ith more resting places. to be used by
matrons and older people. Thus. enough about the gradients.
Attached and directlr across from the front of the em'en a
space I\"as built up as a place for the actors to recite their
parts;- and for the action of the play. and I\"here the nobility
and magistrates I\"ere accustomed to sit in distinguished and
honorable seats apart from the common crolrd.; or sometime in the orebesl/'([ where elegant. ornamemed seats I\"ere
prorided for them. The JJII/pi/1/1II I\"as made Irith ample space
to accommodate the actors and musicians. and the chorus
also mored on it: more space could not be desired. This same
pl//pi/l//11 e\tended forward to the center of the semicircle;Q
and I\"as not raised above five feet in height so that the nobles
could see el'el~' gesture and beautiful artifice [rom the orebesI/'([. HO\reve1', if the orebes//'([ II-as not used this I\"ar. and it Iras
used, instead, by the performers, the area of the PI//jJifl/lII Il'aS
less spacious; however, it I\"aS raised sometimes to the height
of six cubits.;o Still, both kinds were decorated with facades set
with tll'O rOI\"s of colonnades, one over the other, in imitation

i2. The appareill contradiction here mal' be due to ambiguous language.

the four fifths being derived from the Ividth of the orchestra and the
thirds. of the entire space occupied bl' Ihe thealer.
i3. ;\lbeni's mode of expression is ralher curious here: Gmdiblls
11\-0

slIbselliol'lllll ali) dedere /a/i/lldil/i dilllidialll al/i/lldil/is bis:

Literaill': The lower gradients are ometimes til-ice the width (i.e..
from to back) of half the height.
H This seems to implv that ;\Iberti had imended to do illustrations for
this Ivork. If he did. none are know to have survived.
is. I.e.. the upper level behind the dis/egia. or\I'alk-wanl'hich circumscribes the C({rea. dividing it frolll the 1011-er level.
i6. I.e.. from to back.
-.I.e.. thefilllfii/IIIII.
..~Ibeni

refers here to the /riblllifliia which flanked the filllfii/IIIII on
either side abol'e the rOllli/orkl (\"aulted entrances to lhe orcbeo·/m).
Othel\l-ise. the nobililV sat in the orchestra.
i9. I.e" orchestra.
10. The reference here is to a Hellenistic theatre. not Roman.
11. This is the ({1I!ia regia. or "rol'al salon."
)2. ThL~ an, the bo"pi/a!ia. tll"O dool, on either ,ide of the ({lIlia regili. which
Il'PI1'Sl'llled other loci. traditionall\" an inn or other It'Spectable place.
,lage left. ;md aplace of ill repule. such as :I jailor brothel. stage right.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Winter 1998