The Roman theatre of Philippopolis ( la, Theatrum Trimontense; bg, Пловдивски античен театър, ''Plovdivski antichen teatar'') is one of the world's best-preserved ancient Roman theatres, located in the city center of modern

Plovdiv Plovdiv ( bg, Пловдив, ), is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, standing on the banks of the Maritsa river in the historical region of Thrace. It has a population of 346,893 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is the c ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

, once the ancient city of Philippopolis. It was constructed in the 1st century AD, probably during the reign of

Domitian Domitian (; la, Domitianus; 24 October 51 – 18 September 96) was a Roman emperor who reigned from 81 to 96. The son of Vespasian and the younger brother of Titus, his two predecessors on the throne, he was the last member of the Flavi ...

. The theatre can host between 5,000 and 7,000 spectators and it is currently in use.

Description

The spectator seats are orientated to the south, towards the ancient city in the lowland and the

Rhodope Mountains The Rhodopes (; bg, Родопи, ; el, Ροδόπη, ''Rodopi''; tr, Rodoplar) are a mountain range in Southeastern Europe, and the largest by area in Bulgaria, with over 83% of its area in the southern part of the country and the remainder in ...

. In outline, the theatre is a semi-circle with an outer diameter of 82 meters. The theatre itself is divided into the seating section (''

cavea The ''cavea'' (Latin for "enclosure") are the seating sections of Greek and Roman theatres and amphitheatres An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performance ...

'') and the stage (''orchestra''). The ''cavea'', the area in which people gathered, is hollowed out of a hill or slope, while the outer radian seats required structural support and solid retaining walls. The ''cavea'' was not roofed. The spectator seats surround the stage (orchestra), which has the shape of a horseshoe, 26.64 meters long, includes 28 concentric rows of marble seats, divided into two tiers by an

aisle An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, certain types of buildings, such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, parl ...

(diazoma). The upper part of the tiers is interrupted by narrow radial stairways, which divide the cavea into wedge-shaped sectors (kerkides). The theatre also has a ''

podium A podium (plural podiums or podia) is a platform used to raise something to a short distance above its surroundings. It derives from the Greek ''πόδι'' (foot). In architecture a building can rest on a large podium. Podiums can also be used ...

'', which supports the columns of the ''

scaenae frons The scaenae frons is the elaborately decorated permanent architectural background of a Roman theatre stage. The form may have been intended to resemble the facades of imperial palaces. It could support a permanent roof or awnings. The Roman scae ...

''. The stage building – the ''scaenae frons'' – is south of the ''orchestra''. It has three floors and is a high wall of the stage floor, supported by columns. The ''

proscenium A proscenium ( grc-gre, προσκήνιον, ) is the metaphorical vertical plane of space in a theatre, usually surrounded on the top and sides by a physical proscenium arch (whether or not truly "arched") and on the bottom by the stage floor ...

'' is a wall that supports the front edge of the stage with ornately decorated niches off to the sides. The proscaenium, which is 3.16 meters high, and its facade is decorated with an Ionic marble colonnade with triangular pediments. The facade of the scenae, which overlooks the spectators' area, consists of two two-storey ''

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...

s'', the first in the Roman Ionic order and the second in the Roman-Corinthian order. The facade is cut through by three symmetrically located gates. The entrances to the

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

, which are uncovered and vaulted, connect the ''

'' with the stage building. An underground vaulted passage begins from the centre of the orchestra, goes under the stage building and leads out of the theatre. Another vaulted passage, passing under the central bank of seats of the top tier, connects the ''

'' with the Three Hills area. Similar to all the theatres on the territory of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...

, in the theatre of Trimontium the honorary spectator seats were inscribed. There were inscriptions not only for the representatives of the city council but also for magistrates, friends of the Emperor, etc. Some honorary inscriptions show that the building was used as the seat of the

Thracia Thracia or Thrace ( ''Thrakē'') is the ancient name given to the southeastern Balkan region, the land inhabited by the Thracians. Thrace was ruled by the Odrysian kingdom during the Classical and Hellenistic eras, and briefly by the Greek ...

n provincial assembly. Built with around 7,000 seats, each section of seating had the names of the city quarters engraved on the benches so the citizens knew where they were to sit. Whereas Greeks preferred the exercises of gymnasium and

stadium A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...

, Roman interest in sport went to the events at the

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

and

circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclist ...

. Thus, presumably, gladiatorial fights with animals were held in the theatre, as remains of safety facilities in front of the first row have been uncovered. These additions were set because of the visit of Emperor

Caracalla Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor S ...

to Trimontium in 214 AD. The theater was damaged in the 5th century AD by

Attila the Hun Attila (, ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns from 434 until his death in March 453. He was also the leader of a tribal empire consisting of Huns, Ostrogoths, Alans, and Bulgars, among others, in Central and Ea ...

. The theater was only found in the early 1970s due to a landslide. This caused a major archeological excavation, including the removal of some 4.5 m of earth covering what was left hidden by the landslide. The restoration of the Roman theatre in Plovdiv is considered one of the best achievements of the Bulgarian Conservation School. The intervention is limited on the basis of rigorous tests and exclusion of assumptions. The reconstruction was made strictly according to the method of anastylosis and the new material is clearly visible. The theatre is one of the numerous constructions from the time of the Roman Empire, preserved in Bulgaria. There are several

stele A stele ( ),Anglicized plural steles ( ); Greek plural stelai ( ), from Greek , ''stēlē''. The Greek plural is written , ''stēlai'', but this is only rarely encountered in English. or occasionally stela (plural ''stelas'' or ''stelæ''), whe ...

s and wall inscriptions in

Byzantine Greek Medieval Greek (also known as Middle Greek, Byzantine Greek, or Romaic) is the stage of the Greek language between the end of classical antiquity in the 5th–6th centuries and the end of the Middle Ages, conventionally dated to the Ottoman co ...

language in the theatre. File:Bulgaria Bulgaria-0785 - Roman Theatre of Philippopolis (7432772486).jpg, The stage building – the

File:Ancient theatre plovdiv-1.jpg, Statues - part of the decoration of the

File:Ancient theatre plovdiv6.jpg, The spectator seats (cavea) File:Ancient theatre plovdiv-2.jpg, The marble seats with honorary inscriptions File:Bulgaria Bulgaria-0780 - Roman Theatre of Philippopolis (7432755200).jpg, The

and the Parodos

Culture

During the summer months, the theatre hosts theatrical plays and musical shows. The prize award ceremony of the 21st

International Olympiad in Informatics The International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) is an annual competitive programming and one of the International Science Olympiads for secondary school students. It is the second largest science olympiad, after International Mathematical Olympia ...

was held in the theatre.ioi2009.org Heavy metal musician

Devin Townsend Devin Garrett Townsend (born May 5, 1972) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He founded extreme metal band Strapping Young Lad and was its primary songwriter, vocalist, and guitarist from 1994 to 2007. He has also ...

recorded his 2018 live album '' Ocean Machine - Live at the Ancient Roman Theatre Plovdiv'' in the theatre, accompanied with the Plovdiv Opera's Orchestra and Choir. Progressive metal supergroup

Sons of Apollo Sons of Apollo is an American progressive metal supergroup formed in 2017 and composed of drummer Mike Portnoy, bassist Billy Sheehan, keyboardist Derek Sherinian, vocalist Jeff Scott Soto, and guitarist Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal. History Sherin ...

recorded their 2019 live album and concert film ''Live with the Plovdiv Psychotic Symphony'' at the theatre, also accompanied by the Plovdiv Opera's Orchestra and Choir.

Restoration and conservation

At the end of the 4th century a large part of the theatre was destroyed (by either fire or earthquake). This was until the late 1960s when the ruins of the structure were found during archeological excavations in the region carried out by the Plovdiv archeological museum staff. The restoration of the ancient theatre is recognized as one of the greatest achievements in the conservation field in Bulgaria. The monument was restored using the original architectural elements to the greatest degree possible, strictly following the anastylosis technique. Today, the ancient theatre is the most recognizable landmark of

. It plays a significant part in the cultural life of the city (due mainly to the architecture of the monument and its good acoustics) and serves as a stage for plays, concerts, public events, etc. The theatre can accommodate up to 3,500 spectators. Image:Razkrivane antichen teatur.jpg, Image:Razkrivane antichen teatur1.jpg, Image:Razkrivane antichen teatur2.jpg,

Inscriptions from the theatre

Inscription1-from-Plovdiv-Antique-Theater.jpg,

Stele A stele ( ),Anglicized plural steles ( ); Greek plural stelai ( ), from Greek , ''stēlē''. The Greek plural is written , ''stēlai'', but this is only rarely encountered in English. or occasionally stela (plural ''stelas'' or ''stelæ''), whe ...

with Byzantine

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

inscription Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...

from Plovdiv Ancient Theatre Inscription2-from-Plovdiv-Antique-Theater.jpg Inscription3-from-Plovdiv-Antique-Theater.jpg Inscription4-from-Plovdiv-Antique-Theater.jpg

Notes

References

Regional Archaeological Museum Plovdiv - Roman Art, Ancient Sculptures Collection

The Ancient Stadium of Philippopolis - The Ancient Philippopolis and the Ancient Theatre
{{Authority control Ancient Roman theatres in Bulgaria Buildings and structures completed in the 2nd century Buildings and structures in Plovdiv Tourist attractions in Plovdiv Philippopolis (Thrace) Culture in Plovdiv