How did the Romans change the basic structure of the Greek theatre?
They cut the orchestra in half, from a circle (in Greek times) to a semi-circle. They also cut the seating down to a semi-circle, and added a stage which was attached to the flat part of the orchestra. See also the answers for questions 2 through 7. 2. How did they use the orchestra? The orchestra was primarily used as a seating area. 3. Was there a stage, as we know it today, in the Roman theatre? Yes, the stage was probably 100 feet long and about 20 feet deep. 4. How many entrances were in the Roman scaena? Five. There were three entrances along the back (upstage) wall, and one on each side wall. The three rear entrances usually represented three houses, the two side entrances were to different parts of the town. 5. What was placed behind each of these entrances? We don’t know. When Renaissance architect’s began to re-create small Roman theatres in the late 1500’s, they built perspective vistas of Roman streets behind each of the entrances. The entrances became ornate arches framing
