Abstract
D.Litt et Phil. (Greek)
This is a study of how, when and why the popular theatre influenced the character, behavior and the formation of the Greek people’s culture from the establishment of the Greek state up until today. The thesis attempts to fill a gap in current literature as to date there has been no study dealing with the influence exerted by the popular theatre as a whole in shaping the culture of the Greek people.
The first chapter captures the historical and social context of the time period within which the thesis unfolds.
The second chapter refers to existing theories and studies related to the thesis’ topic. Their importance is twofold as a number of them assist in providing answers to issues which are relevant to the popular theatre and its different forms and other studies and theories will be used as a basis upon which to complete the study.
The third chapter presents the historical progress of the popular theatre from the establishment of the Greek state up until today. The major milestones are defined and the conditions and events that influenced the popular theatre are identified. The chapter also outlines the history of urban theatre within the Greek state. Finally, the chapter identifies the relationships between the urban and the popular theatre, namely their manner of communication and mutual influence as well as the means of information exchange, and attempts to answer the question of whether and when the popular theatre influenced the evolution of the urban theatre and vice versa.
The fourth chapter identifies the interactions between popular theater and the Greek society. The chapter relates the evolution of popular theater with the simultaneous evolution of Greek society and explores the relationships between the two. It examines individual parameters defining the relationship between the formal education within the country and popular theater. The chapter also identifies the role that the popular theater had in the dispute over the language issue, which was one of the most serious issues that concerned the intellects of the nation before and after liberation.
The fifth chapter presents the most important primary forms of popular theater such as “the day of the midwife”, “the court”, “the skylodeftera” and others, following as far as possible the calendar year.