Ancient Greece was a flourishing Greek civilization that lasted from the Archaic period to late antiquity. Ancient Greek culture was a technologically advanced civilization that laid the foundation for many of our modern cultural traditions. A tradition that is still very important in our culture is theater. The ancient Greeks were considered the pioneers of theater and are known for introducing the first actor, the tragic genre and the most impressive theater architecture. The Greeks built huge amphitheaters to accommodate thousands and thousands of spectators during a theatrical performance; many of these ancient Greek amphitheaters still exist. The architectural designs of the theater of the ancient Greeks have been adapted and modified over the years by many other cultures. The Romans in particular are known for taking inspiration from the architecture of the ancient Greek theater and transforming it into a new and improved theater to meet the needs of the changing and modernizing eras of theater. By examining ancient Greek architecture and acoustic technology, we will examine how the architectural designs of ancient Greek theater still hold an important place in our modern culture. Theorists and scholars have often examined the birthdate of the art of theater. Much emphasis is placed on the idea that the act of mimesis or an impulse to imitate first occurred in a ritual setting dating back to the beginning of humanity. However, the first civilization that shows evidence of a fully formed and functioning theater is during the ancient Greek civilization. In Athens in 534 BCE, the tyrant Pisistratus held an annual tragedy competition as part of the pri...... middle of paper ......eber, Margarete. The history of Greek and Roman theater. Priceton: Princeton UP, 1939.Print.Farnetani, Andrea, Nicola Prodi and Roberto Pompoli. “On the acoustics of ancient Greek and Roman theaters.” The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 124.3 (2008): 1557.Print.Georgia Institute of Technology. “Ancient Greek Amphitheater: Why You Can Hear from BackRow.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, April 6, 2007. Grolier Incorporated. (1991). Ancient Greece. In the American Encyclopedia. (InternationalEdition, .Vol. 1, p. 111) Grolier Incorporated: International Headquarters: Danbury, Connecticut.Grolier Incorporated. (1991). Ancient Greece. In the American Encyclopedia. (InternationalEdition, .Vol. 26, p. 606) Grolier Incorporated: International Headquarters: Danbury, Connecticut.