Jul 24, 2017
In this episode, we discuss what is known about the lives and works of the earliest tragic poets who set the stage for the first great Athenian playwright, Aischylos, to make all sorts of theatrical innovations at the onset of the Classical Period; and the historical context and major themes of his seven surviving plays,...
Jul 10, 2017
In this episode, we discuss the origins of drama in the Attic countryside, its relation to the cult of Dionysos, and its introduction to Athens in the late 6th century BC; its evolution from a chorus of satyrs singing dithyrambs to the addition of actors (aka Thespians from the first one, Thespis); the Dionysia...
Jul 3, 2017
In this episode, we discuss how, when, and where different subgroups of ancient Greeks consumed food each day; what particular foods were part of each subgroups' diet; some famous early cookbook authors; viticulture and the economic, religious, and medicinal role of wine; the festival of Anthesteria in the month...