Philadelphia (Amman)

PHILADELPHIA (Amman), ancient Arabia, modern Jordan.

COORDINATES: 31º57’08.38’’N // 35º56’23.65’’E

TIPOLOGY: Roman odeon.Urban.

DATE: Half II A.D.

TRANSFORMATIONS:

CAPACITY: 1500 spectators.

CAVEA: Facing west. 38 m. diameter. Maenianum: Ima cavea 10 rows of seats in 4 cunei; Summa cavea with 7 rows in 7 cunei.

ORCHESTRA: 10,75 m. Paved in stone, surrounded by podium.

STAGE BUILDING: Proscaenium was 1,15 m. high. Pulpitum was 22x5,35 m. including proscaenium wall. Scaenae frons was rectilinear.

LOCATION: Close to the Roman theatre.

MY BEDSIDE TABLE: Segal, Arthur; “Theatres in Roman Palestine & provincia Arabia”. New York, E.J. Brill., 1995. // 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.

 

OUT OF PRINT: At the Amman´s roman odeon I lived something that I never had lived anywhere, in my travels through the Middle East. An endless of young people in love going in and out of the odeon, like being in a secret place, a secret place where love leads the steps, chaste love. They lovers coming to the odeon, hand with hand, the sat in the steps, talkink quietly, probably making plans of future, and then go out... that was all, in a continual coming and going, dozens of couples... where were they? You can only see them in the odeon... chaste love. I remember now that verses of an ancient Arab poet, Yamil Butayna: “I ride my eye in the sky / maybe it coincide with hers"

Petra (Petra)

PETRA (Petra), ancient Arabia, modern Jordan.

COORDINATES: 30º19’30.02’’N / 35º26’49.52’’E

TIPOLOGY: Roman theatre (with Nabatean style).
DATE: Last I B.C. or first I A.D.
TRANSFORMATIONS: Half I A.D. and first half of II.
CAPACITY: 6.800 spectators.
CAVEA: Facing Nort-east. 95 m. diameter. Maenianum: Ima cavea has 10 rows of seats in 6 cunei; Media cavea 25 rows; Summa cavea with 14 rows. Media and summa are not perfect semicircles and do not have perfect and clear division. It´s carved on rock.
ORCHESTRA: 24,6 m. diameter.
STAGE BUILDING: Pulpitum is 50 x 6,8 m. Columnatio had two orders and was 13,8 m. high. It´s supposed to have been another level because the cavea is higher.
LOCATION: Between “the Treasury” and the “Royal Tombs”.
MY BEDSIDE TABLE: 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. / Lankester Harding, G.; “The antiquities of Jordan”. Jordan Distribution Agency, 1984.

OUT OF PRINT: First day I saw Petra´s Nabatean theater I was paralyzed for two times. The first one for its undeniable beauty, at dawn, turning the sun the stairs in red, that red of Petra that is unique and fascinating. The second time, in the afternoon, I was paralyzed for about half an hour; I had climbed some of the graves, in order to reach the top of the theater, without measuring the risk. When I realized I had gotten into a ridge from which it was difficult to escape ... I panicked and I was still that half hour trying to stay calm and fighting with the vertigo that had gripped me. I had two options, first one to scream to the people that was down, like little ants, and shouting for help and "rescue"... I chose the second, not without some degree of recklessness , to left the risk shaking on my own, playing stupidly with my life, for shame... but happy for having taken a little silence to the high of that absolutely wonderful red theatre.

Gerasa -South Theatre- (Jerash)

GERASA –South theatre- (Jerash), ancient Arabia, modern Jordan.

COORDINATES: 32º16’36.05” N / 35º53’21.30” E .

TIPOLOGY : Roman theatre. Urban.

DATE: Last I A.D.

TRANSFORMATIONS: Scene building first II A.D.

CAPACITY: 6.000 spectators.

CAVEA: Facing north. 76 m. diameter. Maenianum: Ima cavea 15 row of seats in 4 cunei; Summa cavea: 24 rows of seat  (only 15 survives) in 8 cunei; Summa cavea maybe 5 rows in 8 cunei.

ORCHESTRA: 19,9 m. diameter.

STAGE BUILDING: Proscaenium have 12 niches. Pulpitum 36,5 x 8,3 m. Scaenae frons was rectilinear, columanatio had two storeys.

LOCATION: Close and conected with Temple of Zeus. The archeological place is close to modern Jerash.

MY BEDSIDE TABLE: Segal, Arthur; “Theatres in Roman Palestine & provincia Arabia”. New York, E.J. Brill., 1995. / 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. // Lankester Harding, G.; “The antiquities of Jordan”. Jordan Distribution Agency, 1984.

OUT OF PRINT: Gerasa has three Roman theatres, the South theatre, the North theatre and Birketein´s theatre –a ritual theatre 2klm. north of the city- All of them are very special, in fact all the ancient theatres in Jordan. In Gerasa´s south theatre do not expect that some actors dressed with toga and buskin are going to acting... what you are going to see is some jordan people, dressed in some army local uniform playing bagpipes and drums, with a strange Scottish flavour... you can see a drum in the orchestra... if Euripides would wake up...

Sabra (Wadi Sabra)

SABRA (Wadi Sabra), ancient  Arabia , modern Jordan.

COORDINATES: 30º16'28.03" N // 35º24'34.23" E (I am not 100% sure)
TIPOLOGY : Roman cult theatre. Not urban.

DATE: II A.D.

CAPACITY: 600 spectators.

CAVEA: Facing north-west. 40 m. diameter. Biger than a semicircle. 1 maeniana. Ima cavea: 8 cunei and 10 step survives, carved in rock. Top row seat have a backrest.

ORCHESTRA: 24 m. diameter. Some scholars erroneously  thought it was transformed in a naumachia.

STAGE BUILDING: It is covered.

LOCATION: Wadi Sabra is 8 klm. South of Petra. The theatre is part of a nabatean santuary.

MY BEDSIDE TABLE: 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. // Segal, Arthur; “Theatres in Roman Palestine & provincia Arabia”. New York, E.J. Brill., 1995.

OUT OF PRINT: Sabra is 8 km. south of Petra, there is no road for cars, you have to arrive the place walking or in a donkey. I contacted with a Nabatean teenager that take me to the place after walking two hours between the Wadi and the red lone mountains of Petra; I did not have yet my GPS and I read that it was better to arrive the ancient theatre with somebody who knows the walk, and that was truth, is not easy to find it if you do not know the right way. A very enigmatic place, like all Petra in fact, although with the added of being out of any population signal; and something for not te be forget, a tea made and served in the steps of the theatre, in a makeshift fire made by my companion... Sacrilege? No, just life and peace.