Ancient theatre, Ohrid

elevation / altitude

743 meters

distance

0.50 km from main square / Ohrid

visiting Ancient Theatre

Free to visit, unless there is a performance going on.

  about Ancient Theatre

The theatre, situated close to the Upper Gate, located in the ancient part of Ohrid, Varoš, in the area of High Kale and Upper Saraj on Ilindenska street, was built by the end of the third or at the beginning of the second century BC and had about 4.000 seats. The open Ohrid theater has a perfect location: the two hills that surround it keep it protected from winds that could interfere with acoustics during performances.
Some of the former distinguished citizens have leased their own seats in the theatre, and their names still stand engraved in the stone blocks.
After the Roman conquest, the theatre was readapted into an arena for gladiator fights and fights with wild beasts. However, since the theater was also a site of executions of Christians by the Romans, it rapidly turned to a highly disliked site by the locals. In fact, as a result of this dislike, the theater was abandoned and buried by the locals after the demise of the Roman Empire.
Most probably, the theatre was destroyed by the end of the 4^th century, or at the beginning of the 5^th century AD, when Christianity arrived in Ohrid. The material from its seats was used for construction of sacral and profane buildings.
Fortunately, this allowed for most of the structure to be well preserved, only to be uncovered accidentally in the 1980's. After its complex uncovering and reconstruction, various performanced are taking place again, after twenty centuries, on the open, reconstructed scene of the antique theatre. The theatre is a place were many cultural manifestation are held, including the Ohrid Summer Festival, that is held here every year.