Comic Theaters: Studies in Performance and Audience Response

Reiss, Timothy J.; Gruber, William E.

doi:10.2307/1770977

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Costume in the Comedies of Aristophanes

Compton-Engle

2015

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This book offers an interpretation of the handling of costume in the plays of the fifth-century comic poet Aristophanes. Drawing on both textual and material evidence from the fourth- and fifth-century Greek world, it examines three layers of costume: the bodysuit worn by the actors, the characters' clothes, and the additional layering of disguise. A chapter is also devoted to the inventive costumes of the comic chorus. Going beyond describing what costumes looked like, the book focuses instead on the dynamics of costume as it is manipulated by characters in the performance of plays. The book argues that costume is used competitively, as characters handle each other's costumes and poets vie for status using costume. This argument is informed by performance studies and by analyses of gender and the body.

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Costume in the Comedies of Aristophanes

Compton-Engle

2015

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Control of Costume in Three Plays of Aristophanes

Compton-Engle¹

2003

ajp

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This paper examines the manipulation of costume by characters in Aristophanes' Acharnians, Thesmophoriazusae, and Frogs. Costume control is viewed as a type of comic competition. In Acharnians, Dicaeopolis' overall mastery is expressed by his control over costume; in Thesmophoriazusae, the Relative experiences a series of costume-related humiliations; in Frogs, Dionysus and Xanthias exchange costume, reducing Dionysus' status. Successful manipulation of costume is associated with masculinity and heightened status, while failure to control costume is correlated with emasculation and lowered status. Characters' handling of costume has additional reference to the poet's degree of mastery over the elements of dramatic production.

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