page_title: Roman Theatre of Orange
section_title: The "Roman Festival" and the Chorégies
hierarchical_section_title: Roman Theatre of Orange / The "Roman Festival" and the Chorégies
caption_attribution_description: Les chorégies dans le Théatre antique d'Orange
context_page_description: The Roman Theatre of Orange is a Roman theatre in Orange, Vaucluse, France. It was built early in the 1st century AD. The municipality of Orange owns the structure. The theatre is the home of the summer opera festival called the Chorégies d'Orange.
  It is a very well preserved Roman theatres. It served the Roman colony of Arausio. This colony was founded in 40 BC. The theatre played an important role in the life of the citizens. They spent a large part of their free time there.The Roman authorities saw it as a way to spread spreading Roman culture to the colonies. They also saw it as a way to make them forget about political activities.
  Mime, pantomime, poetry readings and the "attelana" were the most important forms of entertainment. It often lasted all day. The common people liked spectacular effects and beautiful stage sets became very important. The use of stage machinery also became important. The entertainment was open to everyone. It was free of charge.
  The Western Roman Empire declined during the 4th century. Christianity had become the official religion. An official edict closed the theatre in AD 391.
context_section_description: During the 19th century, the theatre slowly started to look better again. Prosper Mérimée helped with this. At the time, he was the director of "Monuments Historiques." He led the restoration. The work began in 1825 and in 1869 the theatre became the home of a "Roman Festival" which celebrated the glory of Rome. It included a performance of Méhul's opera, Joseph. In the second half of the 19th century, and early 20th century, all the major players of the French classical stage appeared in the Orange festivals. For example, Sarah Bernhardt played "Phèdre" there in 1903.
  By the end of the century, the tiered seats were restored. In 1902 the festival had a new name, the "Chorégies". It was planned as a yearly summer festival. The name comes from the tax that wealthy Romans had to pay for theatre productions. Until 1969 the Chorégies consisted of plays and musical works, for example opera and symphonies. However, after that date, it became just an opera festival. Plays were done at Avignon.
  In 1981 UNESCO made the theatre a World Heritage Site.
caption: A performance at the 2007 Chorégies festival
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