Roman theatre and Odeon

Between via Teatro Greco and via Vittorio Emanuele there are the Roman Theatre and the Odeon. Some people assumed that the Roman Theatre’s building, which capacity was more than 7000 people, dates back to II sec. AD, and that it was carried out on a pre-existing Greek Age structure. Probably built on the ancient Acropolis.

In a diameter of about 80 meters, you can still see the orchestra, the pit (which leans on vaulted corridor) and some parts of the scene. The theater was stripped of marble and stone that composed it in 1098 at the behest of Count Roger, in order to speed up the construction of the St. Aghata’s Cathedral. The artifacts recovered during excavations of the seventeenth century are kept in the Municipal Museum.

Because of the different volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, in time the ground level has dropped and now the lower part of the building, especially the orchestra area, is washed by the Amenano’s waters, the river that flows underground to the city, this is the cause prevent the use of theatre for contemporary representations.

The Odeon, located near to the theater, it was built during the second century AD in Roman times, presumably it had the function of hosting concerts and dances. Its shape is semicircular and is placed higher than the theater. Its capacity is significantly less than theatre’s one and it’s characterized by eighteen walls that extend to form long and narrow wedges within which were obtained seventeen rooms covered with vaultes, but now there’re seen just sixteen, also it’s visible the orchestra paved in marble. Even today the Odeon is used for performances of summer shows.