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This developed and expanded considerably under the Romans. The exclusively male actors in the theatre of ancient Greece performed in three types of drama: tragedy, comedy, and the satyr play. In honor of Thespis, actors are commonly called Thespians. Before Thespis' act, Grecian stories were only expressed in song, dance, and in third person narrative. The first recorded case of a performing actor occurred in 534 BC (though the changes in the calendar over the years make it hard to determine exactly) when the Greek performer Thespis stepped onto the stage at the Theatre Dionysus to become the first known person to speak words as a character in a play or story. In modern times, particularly in pantomime and some operas, women occasionally play the roles of boys or young men. After the English Restoration of 1660, women began to appear onstage in England.
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The commedia dell'arte of Italy, however, allowed professional women to perform early on Lucrezia Di Siena, whose name is on a contract of actors from 10 October 1564, has been referred to as the first Italian actress known by name, with Vincenza Armani and Barbara Flaminia as the first primadonnas and the first well-documented actresses in Italy (and in Europe).
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While Ancient Rome did allow female stage performers, only a small minority of them were given speaking parts.
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Interpretation occurs even when the actor is "playing themselves", as in some forms of experimental performance art.įormerly, in ancient Greece and the medieval world, and in England at the time of William Shakespeare, only men could become actors, and women's roles were generally played by men or boys. This can also be considered an "actor's role," which was called this due to scrolls being used in the theaters.
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The actor's interpretation of a role-the art of acting-pertains to the role played, whether based on a real person or fictional character. The analogous Greek term is ὑποκριτής ( hupokritḗs), literally "one who answers". The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance.
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