''Theristai'' ( grc, Θερισταί, also known as ''Reapers'' or ''Harvesters''), is a lost

satyr play The satyr play is a form of Attic theatre performance related to both comedy and tragedy. It preserves theatrical elements of dialogue, actors speaking verse, a chorus that dances and sings, masks and costumes. Its relationship to tragedy is str ...

by Attic playwright Euripides. It was initially performed at the

Dionysia The Dionysia (, , ; Greek: Διονύσια) was a large festival in ancient Athens in honor of the god Dionysus, the central events of which were the theatrical performances of dramatic tragedies and, from 487 BC, comedies. It was the s ...

in Athens in 431 BCE along with the tragedies ''

Medea In Greek mythology, Medea (; grc, Μήδεια, ''Mēdeia'', perhaps implying "planner / schemer") is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, a niece of Circe and the granddaughter of the sun god Helios. Medea figures in the myth of Jason an ...

'', '' Philoctetes'' and ''

Dictys Dictys ( grc, Δίκτυς, ''Díktus'') was a name attributed to four men in Greek mythology. * Dictys, a fisherman and brother of King Polydectes of Seriphos, both being the sons of Magnes and a Naiad, or of Peristhenes and Androthoe,Scholi ...

''. The tetralogy finished in 3rd place, behind tetralogies by Euphorion (

Aeschylus Aeschylus (, ; grc-gre, Αἰσχύλος ; c. 525/524 – c. 456/455 BC) was an ancient Greek tragedian, and is often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Greek ...

' son), who won 1st prize, and

Sophocles Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or c ...

. The play was recorded as having been lost as early as 200 BCE by Aristophanes of Byzantium in his

hypothesis A hypothesis (plural hypotheses) is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon. For a hypothesis to be a scientific hypothesis, the scientific method requires that one can test it. Scientists generally base scientific hypotheses on previous obse ...

for ''Medea''. No fragments have been assigned to Theristai. It has been suggested that this play may be an alternate title for Euripides' lost play '' Syleus'', for which several fragments are extant.

References

{{Authority control Lost plays Plays by Euripides Satyr plays