The Roman Theatre in Bregenz, Vorarlberg, Austria, is located in the quarter of Thalbach in Bregenz. Bregenz was called Brigantium by the Romans. The theatre was excavated by archaeologists specifically in 2013 and 2019 in the name of the Vorarlberg provincial museum (German: vorarlberg museum, former: Vorarlberger Landesmuseum).
The Roman Theatre is located in the Thalbach lane (German: Thalbachgasse) at approx 408 masl, about 30 metres east behind the copper beech ( Fagus sylvatica ), a natural monument [1] [2] In Roman times the Thalbach – Bach in German is a brook – could be openly seen and formed a natural border to the area surrounding the theatre. Nowadays, the Thalbach runs through pipes here.
The Deuringschlössle, or "petite Deuring castle", in the upper part of Bregenz town (in German Bregenzer Oberstadt) is situated above the theatre at approx 35 metres to the east. The linear distance to the Kapuzinerkloster, a Capuchin monastery, is about 130 metres to the southwest, and circa 250 metres southeast to the Kloster Thalbach, or Thalbach Monastery.
The importance of Roman Brigantium is mostly due to its favourable situation at Lake Constance referring to the traffic then. Another benefit of the location was the visible mouth of the local river called Bregenzer Ach, as well as the defile or the Klause (a choke point) which was strategically significant. Today, this area belongs to the municipality of Lochau. As a geographical advantage the local mountain range Pfänderstock in addition provided for a protective shield.
For many decades it was suspected that a Roman Theatre had existed in this area. Yet it was not until the years 2013 respectively 2019 that evidence was found to confirm these assumptions. [3]
Until now there is not much knowledge available on the specific function or use of the Roman Theatre in Bregenz. Most probably the theatre of the Roman era featuring a stage (in German: römisches Bühnentheater) was used for civic and commemorative events, sacred ceremonies etc., as was the case in any other theatre of that time. [3]
The Roman Theatre was built for an audience of more than 2000 visitors. This is by far more than what was needed for the population of Bregenz at the time of the Roman Empire. It can be concluded that this venue had a significance that was far greater than its boundaries. [3] In comparison, the Roman Theatre of Mayence (German: Mainz), known as the largest theatre featuring a stage north of the Alps, could hold about 10,000 spectators.
Its base was made of stones that were mostly found in a brook, called Bachbölla in the local dialect of Vorarlberg. These stones originate in this region and come in an already rounded form. Other than that the building was a wooden construction. Its circumference apparently amounted to more than 50 metres. [4]
The area for the spectators, in Latin called cavea , or cavity (in German (Aus-)Höhlung), consisted of rising tiers in the shape of semi-circles. They were provided with at least two entrance facilities called vomitoria (singular vomitorium, from the Latin word vomere, which means to expectorate, in German: ausspeien, Engl.: spewed), because when seen from the stage the moving masses of spectators must have appeared like being spewed from the vomitoria. It is assumed that the different sectors for visitors in Bregenz were separated by corridors from each other, which was also encountered in other theatres of this type. In Latin this was called cunei (singular cuneus, which means wedge‚ in German Keil). So far there has been no investigation on the possible existence of a roofed gallery at the top end of the auditorium or eventually of a wooden arcade called porticus. It is confirmed that in other theatres awnings, in Latin velarium , were used. To attach these on the outer wall would have surely required several anchor points on the gallery level.
Seats in the theatre were allotted according to the position of the visitor in politics or the importance of his profession, ergo his social status. This is still valid today, as can be seen at Bregenz Festival (in German: Bregenzer Festspiele). Senators or members of the government in high positions were either seated in the orchestra, the space of semi-circles on the ground level found directly in front of the stage, or the tribunalia, which were theatre loges in an elevated position provided for at the sides of the cavea. So far no examination has been conducted on the assumption of a special entrance or aditus maximi for those persons.
Referring to their social status, actors were seen at the bottom of society, apart from the fame of some very few. It was comparable to that of prostitutes or innkeepers. Assumingly in Bregenz of that time, actors were mainly citizens of foreign towns, slaves, or freedmen and women, etc. This situation was encountered throughout the whole Roman Empire. In Latin, these kind of people were called hostes or peregrini ("citizens of foreign towns"), servi respectively mancipia (slaves) or liberti respectively libertini (freedmen or women). Very seldom they were granted the Roman citizenship.
The Stoic Lucius Annaeus Seneca, also called Seneca the Younger, probably born around year 1 and deceased in 65 AD, was a philosopher, playwright, nature scientist and politician then. He labelled actors in the times of the Roman Empire to be proud and venturous heroes on the stage, yet starvelings in reality. They were also thought to be dishonest persons and thus discriminated in various ways. As a consequence, the lex de adulteriis coërcendis to name just one example, permitted a husband to kill an actor if he had seduced his spouse. [5] Such a negative perception of actors as well as the worsened legal conditions for them was maintained over many centuries up until our most recent modern times in Europe.
Bregenz is the capital of Vorarlberg, the westernmost state of Austria. The city lies on the east and southeast shores of Lake Constance, the third-largest freshwater lake in Central Europe, between Switzerland in the west and Germany in the northwest.
Vorarlberg is the westernmost state of Austria. It has the second-smallest geographical area after Vienna and, although it also has the second-smallest population, it is the state with the second-highest population density. It borders three countries: Germany, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. The only Austrian state that shares a border with Vorarlberg is Tyrol, to the east.
Raetia or Rhaetia was a province of the Roman Empire, named after the Rhaetian people. It bordered on the west with the country of the Helvetii, on the east with Noricum, on the north with Vindelicia, on the south-west with Transalpine Gaul and on the south with Venetia et Histria, a region of Roman Italy.
The Bregenzerwald is one of the main regions in the state of Vorarlberg (Austria). It overlaps, but is not coterminous with, the Bregenz Forest Mountains, which belong to a range of the Northern Limestone Alps, specifically the northern flysch zone. It is the drainage basin of the Bregenzer Ach river.
The cavea are the seating sections of Greek and Roman theatres and amphitheatres. In Roman theatres, the cavea is traditionally organised in three horizontal sections, corresponding to the social class of the spectators:
Roman theatres derive from and are part of the overall evolution of earlier Greek theatres. Much of the architectural influence on the Romans came from the Greeks, and theatre structural design was no different from other buildings. However, Roman theatres have specific differences, such as generally being built upon their own foundations instead of earthen works or a hillside and being completely enclosed on all sides.
A vomitorium is a passage situated below or behind a tier of seats in an amphitheatre or a stadium, through which big crowds can exit rapidly at the end of an event. They can also be pathways for actors to enter and leave stage. The Latin word vomitorium, plural vomitoria, derives from the verb vomō, vomere, "to spew forth". In ancient Roman architecture, vomitoria were designed to provide rapid egress for large crowds at amphitheatres and stadia, as they do in modern sports stadia and large theatres.
The Theatre of Pompey was a structure in Ancient Rome built during the latter part of the Roman Republican era by Pompey the Great. Completed in 55 BC, it was the first permanent theatre to be built in Rome. Its ruins are located at Largo di Torre Argentina.
Roman Theatre of Amman is a 6,000-seat, 2nd-century Roman theatre. A famous landmark in the Jordanian capital, it dates back to the Roman period when the city was known as Philadelphia. The theatre and the nearby Odeon are flanking the new Hashemite Plaza from the south and the east respectively, while the Roman Nymphaeum is just a short stroll away in north-westerly direction.
The architectural form of theatre in Rome has been linked to later, more well-known examples from the 1st century BC to the 3rd Century AD. The theatre of ancient Rome referred to as a period of time in which theatrical practice and performance took place in Rome has been linked back even further to the 4th century BC, following the state’s transition from monarchy to republic. Theatre during this era is generally separated into genres of tragedy and comedy, which are represented by a particular style of architecture and stage play, and conveyed to an audience purely as a form of entertainment and control. When it came to the audience, Romans favored entertainment and performance over tragedy and drama, displaying a more modern form of theatre that is still used in contemporary times.
Roman amphitheatres are theatres — large, circular or oval open-air venues with raised seating — built by the ancient Romans. They were used for events such as gladiator combats, venationes and executions. About 230 Roman amphitheatres have been found across the area of the Roman Empire. Early amphitheatres date from the Republican period, though they became more monumental during the Imperial era.
The Roman Theatre of Mérida is a construction promoted by the consul Vipsanius Agrippa in the Roman city of Emerita Augusta, capital of Lusitania. It was constructed in the years 16 to 15 BCE. One of the most famous and visited landmarks in Spain, the Roman Theatre of Mérida is regarded as a Spanish cultural icon and was chosen as one of the 12 Treasures of Spain.
The vorarlberg museum in Bregenz is the state art and cultural museum of the Austrian federal state of Vorarlberg.
The ancient theatre of Taormina is an ancient Greek theatre in Taormina, Sicily, built in the third century BC.
Bregenzer Festspiele is a performing arts festival which is held every July and August in Bregenz in Vorarlberg (Austria). It features a large floating stage which is situated on Lake Constance.
The Roman Theatre at Apamea is a Roman theatre in ancient Apamea in northwestern Syria. Originally a Hellenistic theatre, the monumental structure was one of the largest theatres in the Roman world.
The Roman Theatre at Palmyra is a Roman theatre in ancient Palmyra in the Syrian Desert. The unfinished theatre dates back to the second-century CE Severan period. The theatre's remains have since been restored. It was occupied by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in May 2015 and recaptured by the government forces in March 2016 with the support of Russian airstrikes.
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At the lot Galgenbihl, a former place of executions in Bregenz was the location where in earlier times people of Vorarlberg, Austria, convicted in the County of Bregenz, were executed. Synonyms in German to name such a place are e.g. Richtstätte, Richtplatz and Richtstatt, all words implying a place combined with judgement, in German: richten.