Pergamo (Bergama)

PERGAMO (Bergama), ancient Mysia / Asia Minor, modern Turkey.

COORDINATES: 39º07’54.64’’N // 27º10’58.67’’E
TIPOLOGY: Greek theatre.
DATE: Last quarter of III B.C.
TRANSFORMATIONS: Stage building was rebuilt in II B.C. In roman times a royal box was built in media cavea and the three first rows of seats were removed for transforming the orchestra in arena.
CAPACITY: 11.000 spectators.
CAVEA: Facing west. 80 m. diameter, but we have to know that only ima cavea is a perfect semicircle. The upper cavea is enclosed by walls. Maenianum: Ima cavea has 21 rows of seats in 7 cunei; Media cavea 32 rows in 6 cunei; Summa cavea 25 rows in 6 cunei.
ORCHESTRA: 21 m. diameter.
STAGE BUILDING: It did not have a permanent stage building, because of terrance. There are remains of three rows of post-holes were woden stage was anchored.
LOCATION: West side of the Acropolis hill.
MY BEDSIDE TABLE: Yilmaz, Yasar; “Anadolu Antik Tiyatrolari”. Istanbul, Yem Yanin, 2010. // Sear, Frank; “Roman theatres: an architectural study”. Oxford University Press, 2006. // Ciancio Rossetto, Paola; Giuseppina Pisani Sartorio (eds); “Teatri Greci e Romani: alle origini del linguaggio rappresentato”. Rome: SEAT, 1995. // Bieber, Margarete. “The History of The Greek and Roman Theatre”. Princeton University Press, 1961. // Pappalardo, Umberto. “Teatri greci e romani”. Verona, Arsenale Editrice, 2007. // Bean, George; “Aegan Turkey”. London, Ernst Benn, 1972.

 OUT OF PRINT: These is a classical ancient theatre image, in archeological books, in travel guides, in ancient theatres bibliography. I can assure that being in the top rows of seat get dizzy. It seems that you are flying, and for not being a semicircle cavea and being a very high cavea the acoustic is wonderful. To fly in Pergamo Greek theatre would be to play Aristophanes´Birds.