Greco-Roman Pantomime

Literary/ Cultural Context Essay

Elodie Paillard (University of Sydney)

Ed. by Emily Kneebone, University of Nottingham
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.1.2: Ancient Roman Writing and Culture (Republic and Empire), -750-476.
Vol. editors: William John Dominik (University of Otago), Giacomo Fedeli (University of Exeter), Thomas Habinek (University of Southern California), Emily Kneebone (University of Nottingham), Elodie Paillard (University of Sydney), Sophia Papaioannou (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens), Jula Wildberger (The American University of Paris)

Dates

Date of occurrence c.-022- c.650

Places

Ancient Rome (Republic & Empire) (Location)

Genres and Modes

Drama

Resources

Recommended Reading

Pantomime in Greco-Roman Antiquity

Ancient pantomime performances centred on elaborate dancing movements performed by a solo male (or, more rarely, female) dancer accompanied by musicians and singers. The dancer skilfully mimed characters and stories with their entire body, which made for a stunning visual spectacle. Performances of this kind became popular from the beginning of the Imperial period. The plot of the story was sung by the chorus or the solo singer who accompanied the dancer, and it is likely that each performance was built from a succession of small scenes, often inspired by tragedies or mythological episodes. Pantomime performances were not constrained by the usual conventions of the tragic …

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2477 words

Citation: Paillard, Elodie. "Greco-Roman Pantomime". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 16 September 2020 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=19596, accessed 24 November 2024.]

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