A Stage-play │ Ludus Scēnicus
lūdus,
-ī [2/m]: wide variety of meanings including [i] school (esp. primary school);
[ii] game; sport; play; [iii] (pl.) lūdī: games; spectacles; stage-plays
scēnicus, -a, -um: pertaining to the stage; theatrical; dramatic
- scēna, -ae [1/f] or scaena, -ae [1/f]: stage; scene (Engl. behind the scenes)
[1]
In a play-house,
1. (which is trimmed with hangings, 2. and covered with curtains,
3.) comedies and tragedies are acted, wherein memorable
things are represented; as here, the History of the Prodigal Son,
4. and his Father, 5. by whom he is entertain’d, being return’d home.
In theātrō,
1. (quod vestītur tapētibus, 2. & tegitur sīpariīs, 3.) cōmœdiæ
vel tragœdiæ aguntur, quibus repræsentantur rēs memorābilēs ut
hic, Historia dē Fīliō Prōdigō, 4. & Patre, 5. ipsīus, ā quō recipitur,
domum redux.
[i] theātrum, -ī
[2/n]: theatre
[ii] tapēs, tapētis [3/n] rug; carpet;
cloth (decorative) used
for tapestries, wall-hangings etc.; also: tapēte, -is [3/n]
That these cloths
were used both on floors and walls is reflected in:
- Fr. tapis; Ital. tappeto: carpet; rug
- Gmn. Tapete: wallpaper; Gmn. Teppich: rug, carpet; tapestry
[iii] sīparium, -ī
[2/n]: (smaller) curtain in a theatre
- post sīparium: behind the scenes
- also: aulaeum, -ī [2/n]: canopy; covering; theatre curtain
“The curtain of a
theatre; which, among the ancients, contrary to modern usage, was
lowered from the ceiling to the floor at the beginning of a piece or act,
and at the conclusion was drawn up (Smith, Dict. Antiq.)”
- aulaeum mittitur: the curtain is dropped / lowered at the beginning i.e. revealing the scene
- aulaeum tollitur: the curtain is drawn up / raised at the end of an act or scene i.e. hiding the scene
i.e. the terms are
the opposite of how would we express the idea now
[iv] cōmoedia, -ae
[1/f]: comedy; tragoedia, -ae [1/f]:
tragedy
[v] agō, -ere,
ēgī, āctus [3]: (here) act
[vi] repraesentō,
-āre [1]: display; exhibit; show
[vii]
theātrum vestītur
¦ tapētibus [ablative] │ the theatre is decked out ¦ in
drapes / hangings
theātrum tegitur
¦ sīpariīs [ablative] │ the theatre is covered ¦ with
curtains
[2]
The players
act being in disguise; the fool, 6. maketh jests.
Āctōrēs (histriōnēs) agunt persōnātī;
moriō, 6. dat jocōs.
[i]
āctor, āctōris
[3/m]: actor; āctrīx, āctrīcis [3/f]: actress
The terms, apart
from the specific meaning they have here, had a wider reference in Ancient Rome
to the “doer”, the person who performs an action, hence the derivative agent;
in Law, they could refer to the plaintiff, prosecutor or advocate.
[ii] histriō,
histriōnis [3/m]: actor; player
This is a good example of how derivatives become more specific over time:
histriōnicus, -a, -um: pertaining to the theatre > Engl. histrionic: pertaining
to the theatre; “my histrionic art” (Gilbert). However, it used far more
commonly nowadays to refer to over-acting, being excessively and, most
likely falsely emotional and attention-seeking; “I’ve had enough of your histrionics.”
[iii] personātus,
-a, -um: masked; wearing a mask; pretended; fictitious; an assumed character
> Engl. impersonate
[iv] mōriō,
mōriōnis [3/m]: absolute fool < Anc. Gk. μωρός [mōrós]: slow; dull; the
Engl. deriv. moron directly from Greek
[v] iocus, -ī [2 /m]: joke; jest; any form of amusement e.g. pastime
or sport
[3]
The chief of the spectators
[i.e. the leading spectators / foremost of the spectators] sit in the gallery,
7. the common sort stand on the ground, 8. and clap the hands,
if anything please them.
Spectātōrum prīmāriī, sedent in orchēstrā, 7.
plēbs stat in caveā, 8. & plaudit, sī quid arrīdet.
[i] spectātor,
spectātōris [3/m]: spectator < spectō, -āre [1]: watch
We would use spectator
referring mainly to watching, for example, sports. The term audience is
derived from La. audiēns, audientis: hearing / listening;
audientia, -ae [2/f]: a group of listeners
[ii] Terminology
regarding parts of a theatre has changed over time; Comenius describes a
theatre plan that reflects the period in which he lived. The image of the
reconstructed Globe Theatre in London shows that the ‘commoners’ stood around
the stage whereas the “great and the good” (and the ones with more money) occupied
tiered seating in the gallery at higher levels.
(a) Rome:
orchēstra, -ae [1/f]: area in front of the stage; nowadays, of course,
‘orchestra’ refers to the musicians who, in a theatre, play in an orchestra pit
in front of the stage.
(b) cavea, -ae
[1/f]: hollow; cavity; if you look at the shape of a Roman theatre, it is clear
why that term was used because it referred to the seating area or to the entire
theatre. Comenius narrows it down here to the unseated “hollow” area.
[iii]
plaudō, -ere,
plausī, plausus [3]: strike, beat, clap; Engl. deriv. plaudit
- applaudō, -ere [3]: strike one thing against another e.g. hands; applaud
- plausus, -us [4/m]; applausus, -ūs [4/m] (Late): applause
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