An actor is a person who portrays a character in a performance (also
actress; see below). The actor performs "in the flesh" in the
traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film,
radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is á½'Ï€Î¿ÎºÏ Î¹Ï„Î®Ï‚
(hupokritḗs), literally "one who answers". The actor's
interpretation of their roleâ€"the art of actingâ€"pertains to the
role played, whether based on a real person or fictional character.
This can also be considered an "actor's role," which was called this
due to scrolls being used in the theaters. Interpretation occurs even
when the actor is "playing themselves", as in some forms of
experimental performance art.Formerly, in ancient Greece and Rome, the
medieval world, and the time of William Shakespeare, only men could
become actors, and women's roles were generally played by men or boys.
While Ancient Rome did allow female stage performers, only a small
minority of them were given speaking parts. The commedia dell’arte
of Italy, however, allowed professional women to perform early on:
Lucrezia Di Siena, whose name is on a contract of actors from 10
October 1564, has been referred to as the first Italian actress known
by name, with Vincenza Armani and Barbara Flaminia as the first
primadonna's and the first well documented actresses in Italy (and
Europe). After the English Restoration of 1660, women began to appear
on stage in England. In modern times, particularly in pantomime and
some operas, women occasionally play the roles of boys or young
men.The first recorded case of a performing actor occurred in 534 BC
(though the changes in calendar over the years make it hard to
determine exactly) when the Greek performer Thespis stepped onto the
stage at the Theatre Dionysus to become the first known person to
speak words as a character in a play or story. Before Thespis' act,
Grecian stories were only expressed in song, dance, and in third
person narrative. In honor of Thespis, actors are commonly called
Thespians. The exclusively male actors in the theatre of ancient
Greece performed in three types of drama: tragedy, comedy, and the
satyr play. Western theatre developed and expanded considerably under
the Romans. The theatre of ancient Rome was a thriving and diverse art
form, ranging from festival performances of street theatre, nude
dancing, and acrobatics, to the staging of situation comedies, to
high-style, verbally elaborate tragedies.As the Western Roman Empire
fell into decay through the 4th and 5th centuries, the seat of Roman
power shifted to Constantinople and the Byzantine Empire. Records show
that mime, pantomime, scenes or recitations from tragedies and
comedies, dances, and other entertainments were very popular. From the
5th century, Western Europe was plunged into a period of general
disorder. Small nomadic bands of actors traveled around Europe
throughout the period, performing wherever they could find an
audience; there is no evidence that they produced anything but crude
scenes. Traditionally, actors were not of high status; therefore, in
the Early Middle Ages, traveling acting troupes were often viewed with
distrust. Early Middle Ages actors were denounced by the Church during
the Dark Ages, as they were viewed as dangerous, immoral, and pagan.
In many parts of Europe, traditional beliefs of the region and time
meant actors could not receive a Christian burial.
actress; see below). The actor performs "in the flesh" in the
traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film,
radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is á½'Ï€Î¿ÎºÏ Î¹Ï„Î®Ï‚
(hupokritḗs), literally "one who answers". The actor's
interpretation of their roleâ€"the art of actingâ€"pertains to the
role played, whether based on a real person or fictional character.
This can also be considered an "actor's role," which was called this
due to scrolls being used in the theaters. Interpretation occurs even
when the actor is "playing themselves", as in some forms of
experimental performance art.Formerly, in ancient Greece and Rome, the
medieval world, and the time of William Shakespeare, only men could
become actors, and women's roles were generally played by men or boys.
While Ancient Rome did allow female stage performers, only a small
minority of them were given speaking parts. The commedia dell’arte
of Italy, however, allowed professional women to perform early on:
Lucrezia Di Siena, whose name is on a contract of actors from 10
October 1564, has been referred to as the first Italian actress known
by name, with Vincenza Armani and Barbara Flaminia as the first
primadonna's and the first well documented actresses in Italy (and
Europe). After the English Restoration of 1660, women began to appear
on stage in England. In modern times, particularly in pantomime and
some operas, women occasionally play the roles of boys or young
men.The first recorded case of a performing actor occurred in 534 BC
(though the changes in calendar over the years make it hard to
determine exactly) when the Greek performer Thespis stepped onto the
stage at the Theatre Dionysus to become the first known person to
speak words as a character in a play or story. Before Thespis' act,
Grecian stories were only expressed in song, dance, and in third
person narrative. In honor of Thespis, actors are commonly called
Thespians. The exclusively male actors in the theatre of ancient
Greece performed in three types of drama: tragedy, comedy, and the
satyr play. Western theatre developed and expanded considerably under
the Romans. The theatre of ancient Rome was a thriving and diverse art
form, ranging from festival performances of street theatre, nude
dancing, and acrobatics, to the staging of situation comedies, to
high-style, verbally elaborate tragedies.As the Western Roman Empire
fell into decay through the 4th and 5th centuries, the seat of Roman
power shifted to Constantinople and the Byzantine Empire. Records show
that mime, pantomime, scenes or recitations from tragedies and
comedies, dances, and other entertainments were very popular. From the
5th century, Western Europe was plunged into a period of general
disorder. Small nomadic bands of actors traveled around Europe
throughout the period, performing wherever they could find an
audience; there is no evidence that they produced anything but crude
scenes. Traditionally, actors were not of high status; therefore, in
the Early Middle Ages, traveling acting troupes were often viewed with
distrust. Early Middle Ages actors were denounced by the Church during
the Dark Ages, as they were viewed as dangerous, immoral, and pagan.
In many parts of Europe, traditional beliefs of the region and time
meant actors could not receive a Christian burial.
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