Page 168 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Provence & The Côte d'Azur

166  PROVENCE AREA B Y AREA

Théâtre Antique et Musée d’Orange
Orange’s Roman theatre, a UNESCO World Heritage site,
is one of the best preserved in Europe. It was built at the
start of the Christian era against the natural height of the
Colline-St-Eutrope. Its stage doors were hollow so that
actors could stand in front of them and amplify their voices;
today other acoustic touches make it ideal for concerts. The Awning Supports
cavea, or tiered semicircle, held up to 7,000 spectators. From Still visible on the exterior walls
the 16th to 19th centuries, the theatre was filled with squalid are corbels which held the huge
housing, traces of which can still be seen. A new roof has velum-bearing masts.
been built above the stage, and a multimedia presentation
of great moments in the theatre’s history takes place in four
grottoes behind the tiers of the amphitheatre. Some parts
of the theatre may be closed for restoration work, check
before visiting.
Main entrance

Roman Theatre
This reconstruction shows
the theatre as it would have
looked in Roman times. Today
it owes its reputation to its
exceptional stage wall, the
only Roman stage wall to
remain intact.

Night Concerts
Cultural events such
as Les Chorégies
d’Orange, a festival
of opera, drama
and ballet (see p37),
once frequented by
Sarah Bernhardt, have
been held here since
1869. The theatre is
also a popular rock
concert venue.
KEY
1 A canvas awning, known as a
velum, protected the theatregoers
from sun or rain.
2 The stage curtain (aulaeum)
was lowered to reveal the stage,
rather than raised. It was operated
by machinery concealed beneath
the floor of the stage.
3 Side rooms, or parascaenia, were
where actors could rest, and props
be stored, when not required on stage.
4 Each strip of velum of velum of awning
could be rolled individually to suit
the direction of the sunlight.
5 Winched capstans held and
tightened the ropes supporting The Great Wall
the velum. Built of red limestone, this massive construction is 103 m (338 ft)
long, 36 m (117ft) high and over 1.8 m (5 ft) thick.
For hotels and restaurants in this region see p201 and pp215–16