The history of Armenian theater is a fascinating journey that dates back to ancient times. The first known theater building in Armenia, built in the Hellenistic style and designed to accommodate a large audience, was constructed by King Tigran II the Great (95-55 BC) in his new capital, Tigranakert, in 69 BC.
The foundation of the Armenian national theater was laid by Tigran II’s son, King Artavazd II (54-34 BC). In 53 BC, in the city of Artashat, where Greek tragedies and comedies were previously performed, an Armenian theater was established. This was connected to an episode described by Plutarch.
During a celebration of their victory over the Roman general Crassus at the Battle of Carrhae, King Artavazd II and the visiting Parthian King Orodes II were watching Euripides’ tragedy “The Bacchae” in the royal palace of Artashat. During the performance, the Parthian satrap Silaces ran into the hall and threw the severed head of Crassus, sent from the battlefield, into the audience.
The Greek actor Jason of Tralles, playing the role of Agave, picked up the head, replaced the mask and the prop head of the tragic hero Pentheus with it, and, in a state of Bacchic ecstasy, enthusiastically declared: “We bring home from the mountains the head of a stag, just killed on our happy hunt.”
Plutarch writes that “everyone present enjoyed it.” According to the renowned theater scholar G. Goyan, this significant episode was not accidental but premeditated and performed according to a script devised by Artavazd II himself. Plutarch notes the presence of the Parthian Pomaxathres (Exathres), who had beheaded Crassus, at the royal feast.
The head of Crassus was brought to Artashat before the feast celebrating the victory over Rome, not during the performance; therefore, the episode with Crassus’ head was staged by the Artashat theater troupe under the direction of Artavazd II, who went down in the history of ancient Armenian culture as its first playwright.
Thus, as early as the 1st century BC, there was a professional theatrical culture in ancient Armenia, which, however, had its prehistory, largely connected with religious beliefs, where the cult of each deity was accompanied by its specific ceremonial, including various sacred acts performed at temples. Participants in these sacred rites and mysteries, besides priests and priestesses, included various performers such as dancers, singers, acrobats, and musicians.
One of the most important sources of professional theater was the various folk theatrical performances and shows. In particular, the indigenous theater of gusans (a term equivalent to the Greek mimos, meaning those who play or sing in the theater) was very widespread, developing in tragic, comic, and farcical-buffoon genres.
The origin of the tragic genre in Armenia was associated with the ancient cult ceremonial of the burial rites of first the “dying deity” and then kings and court nobility, with their need for such an ancestor cult that, glorifying those who had passed into the afterlife, would strengthen the power of the “relatives of the gods” remaining on earth.
The indispensable participants in these lavish rites were the gusans, who announced the sad news with their voice (dzain). These gusans were called dzainarku (literally: the one who cries out, mourns) or vohbergak (“lamenter”). They reported the circumstances of the noble person’s death, praised him and his deeds, and mourned his death.
Striving to vividly remind people of the deceased, the gusans tried to visually depict the deceased by imitating his voice, gestures, and movements. Thus, the tragic genre was born. The texts of the performances were delivered in the form of a narrative or recitative; a chorus was mandatory, and the actors’ movements were characterized as dance-pantomime.
The deep connections of this genre with pagan burial rites, mourning the dead, and praising their deeds are reflected in the word vohbergutyun (“lamentation”), which in the Armenian language still expresses the concept of “tragedy.” When Greek tragedians appeared in Armenia, they found the art of the gusans at a certain stage of its artistic development—on the way from pagan cult rites and actions to the ancient theater.
This allowed Armenians to see in the Greek tragedy brought from Greece something already familiar, having its local name. That is why the Greek term “tragedy,” which entered many languages of the world, did not enter the Armenian language, as the local term vohbergutyun, which had long been used to denote a pagan funeral ceremony, was established for it.
The comic genre of the theater of katakagusans developed from the humorous and joyful singing—katakergutyun—that accompanied the ceremonial of the ancient cult associated with the “resurrecting deity,” with the rite of joyful celebration of the rebirth of nature, the arrival of spring; in it, along with male gusans, women—vardzaks (from varz—payment for labor, hire; from Middle Persian varza—”payment”)—also participated.
Carnival merriment in city squares, filled with crowds of spectators, was accompanied by various jokes and mockery. This comic-farcical genre, especially loved by the people, was known even before the Armenians became acquainted with the Greek comic theater. Therefore, the concept of “comedy” from ancient times to the present day is denoted in the Armenian language not by the Greek word, but by its local term katakergutyun.
From it come the words “comedian” (katak) and “comediographer” (katakergak). This same name was used in Armenia for the Greek comediographers Aristophanes and Menander, whose traditions were continued by local katakergaks. The word “theater” (Armenian tatron) entered the Armenian language through the Greek word theatron in its Syrian transcription tatr.
As in the entire Hellenistic East, theater in Armenia was an integral part of urban life. Traveling troupes of comedians, mimes, and tightrope walkers, who performed everyday scenes on the streets, exposing human vices to public condemnation, were also very popular among the people.
In the early medieval period, theatrical art, inheriting the experience of the Armenian Hellenistic theater, experienced a rise. During that period, theaters continued to be built in the ancient style, in the form of amphitheater-like stone buildings. Special seats in the upper rows were reserved for women.
The theatrical repertoire was of two kinds. On the one hand, it continued to consist of tragedies and comedies by Euripides and Menander, and, apparently, was also represented by plays by local playwrights imitating Greek authors—tragedians (vohbergaks) and comediographers (katakergaks), who created their tragic performances in the spirit of Armenian epic poems, and comedies in the spirit of folk satirical poetry. On the other hand, there was also entertaining farcical-buffoon dramaturgy of pantomime in the form of street folk comedy theater.
Theaters enjoyed immense popularity, not only among lay spectators, who were nicknamed gusanamol (i.e., gusanaman) for their devotion to this art form, but even among some clergy, who, however, supported only socially useful, in their view, “edifying” comedies by Menander and “heroic” tragedies by Euripides, while works based on fabulous-mythological plots were not accepted. The orthodox part of the Armenian clergy completely rejected the theater as an institution of dangerous paganism, hindering the deep assimilation of Christianity.
Such a struggle of the Christian church against the pagan art of the ancient theater was also waged in Byzantium and Syria. In Armenia, the sermons of John Chrysostom (c. 350-407), translated into Armenian, were well known, particularly his “Discourses against those who, leaving the church, rush to the hippodromes and theaters.”
Similar views were held by the Armenian Catholicos John I Mandakuni (478-490). In his expressively titled speech “On the Lawless Devilish Theaters,” he addressed his compatriots with anger and sorrow, saying that “from your most vile iniquities, the devilish theaters rejoice and triumph every hour, while the churches of Christ bitterly weep and mourn.”
Despite the general decline of culture in Armenia during the Arab rule (7th-9th centuries), theatrical art, firmly embedded in the life of the people, continued to exist during this time, and the church fathers, seeing its popularity, still lamented and said that “when theatrical performances are staged, the church mourns the people’s ruin.”
Meanwhile, it is known that relatively early in the oldest Eastern Christian churches (Syrian, Greek, Armenian), elements of theatricality began to be used in worship. Some of these theatrical elements lasted for a short time, while others have survived to this day, such as the altar in the Armenian church, which is arranged exactly like theatrical stage platforms.
This was also fixed in the language, as the same word bem (from ancient Hebrew bama, i.e., elevation) denotes both the elevation for the altar and the theatrical stage, and the adjective bemakan means both “altar” and “stage.” In addition, the word horan is used to denote the altar in the Armenian language, corresponding to the terms skene and scena in ancient Greek and Latin. On both sides of the altar are steps connecting it to the main part of the church.
A movable curtain stretches across the entire width of the altar. When it is drawn, a proscenium is formed in front of it, used just like in a theater.
Medieval Armenian miniatures provide a wealth of material for studying theater, depicting actors and entire theatrical performances on various secular (e.g., genre scenes, parables, fables, allegories) and religious (particularly from the Old and New Testaments) subjects, scenes with masqueraders, trained animals, musicians, and dancers.
In the 10th-13th centuries, the Armenian theater experienced a revival, with performances often held in monasteries and churches. The clergy, recognizing the educational potential of theater, began to incorporate theatrical elements into religious ceremonies. This period saw the emergence of religious dramas, which were performed during church festivals and other significant events.
The 19th century marked a new era for Armenian theater, with the establishment of permanent theaters in major cities like Tbilisi, Constantinople, and Yerevan. These theaters staged a variety of performances, including classical plays, operas, and ballets, contributing to the cultural renaissance of the Armenian people.
In the 20th century, Armenian theater continued to evolve, with the establishment of the Armenian State Theater in Yerevan in 1921. This theater became a hub for artistic innovation, producing works by both Armenian and international playwrights. Despite the challenges posed by political and social upheavals, Armenian theater has remained a vital part of the country’s cultural landscape, reflecting the resilience and creativity of its people.
Today, Armenian theater continues to thrive, with numerous theaters and performance groups active throughout the country. From traditional folk performances to contemporary experimental theater, the rich heritage of Armenian theater continues to inspire and entertain audiences, both in Armenia and around the world.
Artatsolum
Based on the article by Alla Ter-Sarkisyants, Doctor of Historical Sciences
