Roman arena at Arles, inside view.

The name amphitheatre (alternatively amphitheater) refers to a level, open space surrounded by an oval area that gradually ascends. The area may be a man-made structure or a natural geographic formation, but it is suited for seating people on the sloping area for the viewing of spectator sports, games, concerts, displays, rallies, or theatrical performances. An amphitheatre can be classified as either an ancient amphitheatre, a contemporary amphitheatre, or a natural amphitheatre.

Roman amphitheatres

There are many famous examples from Classical period (being particularly associated with ancient Rome amphitheatres were used for various types of public spectacles. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC In the Roman Empire, amphitheatres were round or oval in shape (created originally from two wooden theatres joined together, hence the name "Amphi"-theatre) , forming a complete circle or ellipse, and were used for spectator sports, games and displays. The Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial The theatre of ancient Greece, or ancient Greek drama, is a theatrical Culture that flourished in ancient Greece between c This is in contrast to a Greek or Roman classical theatre, which was semi-circular and used for theatrical performances (also gladiators in areas where amphitheaters were not available). The theatre of ancient Greece, or ancient Greek drama, is a theatrical Culture that flourished in ancient Greece between c Theatre (or theater, see spelling differences) is the branch of the Performing arts defined by Bernard Beckerman as what "occurs when one An amphitheatre also differed from a Roman circus or Greek hippodrome, both of which were used for chariot racing and horse racing and were shaped more like a very long, narrow horse shoe. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC The Roman Circus was a large open-air venue used for public events in the ancient Roman Empire. Architecture was extinct in Greece from the end of the Mycenaean period (about 1200 BC to the 7th century BC when urpeppeeban life and prosperity recovered A Hippodrome (Gr from hippos, horse and dromos, race course was a course provided by the Greeks for Horse racing and Chariot racing Chariot racing (ἁρματοδρομία/armatodromia was one of the most popular ancient Greek, Roman and Byzantine Sports Chariot This article is about the sport For other uses see Horserace (drinking game or Horse race (politics. A horseshoe is a U-shaped item made of metal or of modern synthetic materials nailed or glued to the Hooves of Horses and some other Draught

The Colosseum

The best-known amphitheatre in the world is the Colosseum in Rome, which is more correctly termed the Flavian amphitheatre (Amphitheatrum Flavii), after the Flavian dynasty who had it built. The Colosseum or Roman Coliseum, originally the Flavian Amphitheatre ( Latin: Amphitheatrum Flavium, Italian Anfiteatro Flavio Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 The Flavian dynasty was a Roman imperial Dynasty, which ruled the Roman Empire between 69 and 96 AD encompassing the reigns of Vespasian (69&ndash79 An amphitheatre in a community became a prized symbol of Roman citizenship in the outlying areas of Italy. Citizenship in the time of Ancient Rome was a privileged status afforded to certain individuals with respect to laws property and governance Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest In the small town of Larino, in the Molise, a man who had made his fortune in far away Rome financed the construction of an oval amphitheatre that could house ten thousand spectators. Larino ( Latin: Larinum, Campobassan dialect Larìn) is a town and commune of approximately 7000 inhabitants in the Italian Region of Molise Molise is a region of Southern Italy, the second smallest of the regions Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 In fact, the amphitheatre in Larino predates the Colosseum. The remains of some 230 amphitheatres have been located in widely scattered areas of the Roman Empire.

See also: List of Roman amphitheatres. The remains of at least 320 Amphitheatres have been found widely scattered areas of the Roman Empire.

Contemporary amphitheatres

The Hollywood Bowl, Hollywood, California. The Hollywood Bowl is a famous modern Amphitheatre in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles California, USA, that is used primarily for music Performances California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean.

A contemporary amphitheatre is a curved, acoustically vibrant performance space, particularly one located outdoors. Contemporary amphitheatres often include standing structures, sometimes curved or "bowl" shaped, both behind the stage and behind the audience, creating an area which echoes or amplifies sound, making the amphitheatre ideal for musical or theatrical performances. Most are semi-circular in shape, and so should not properly be called amphitheatres. Notable modern amphitheatres include the Gibson Amphitheatre and the Hollywood Bowl; the largest amphitheatre in North America is the Hyundai Pavilion in Devore, California, with a seating capacity of 65,000. The Gibson Amphitheatre (formerly Universal Amphitheatre) is a Theatre located in Universal City California, USA. The Hollywood Bowl is a famous modern Amphitheatre in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles California, USA, that is used primarily for music Performances Seating capacity refers to the number

See also: List of contemporary amphitheatres. This is a list of contemporary amphitheatres. See also List of buildings List of concert halls

Natural amphitheatres

Bryce Canyon Amphitheatre

A natural amphitheatre is a performance space located in a spot where a steep mountain or a particular rock formation naturally amplifies or echoes sound, making it ideal for musical and theatrical performances. Bryce Canyon National Park (ˈbraɪs is a National park located in southwestern Utah in the United States The term amphitheatre can also be used to describe naturally occurring formations which would be ideal for this purpose, even if no theatre has been constructed there. Notable natural amphitheatres include the Drakensberg amphitheatre in Drakensberg, South Africa, Slane Castle in Ireland, Echo amphitheatre, Red Rocks Amphitheatre and The Gorge Amphitheatre, all of which are in the United States. The Amphitheatre is one of the geographical features of the Northern Drakensberg, South Africa, and is widely regarded as one of the most impressive cliff faces on The Drakensberg ( Afrikaans: "Dragon's Mountain" Mountains are the highest mountain range in Southern Africa, rising up to in height The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa Slane Castle is a castle located in Slane village County Meath, in the Republic of Ireland. Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world Echo amphitheatre is a natural Amphitheatre located in Rio Arriba County, in northern New Mexico in the southwestern United States, about Red Rocks Amphitheatre is a rock structure in Red Rocks Park near Morrison, Colorado (west of Denver) where concerts are given in the open-air The Gorge Amphitheatre is a 20000 seat concert venue located above the Columbia River Gorge in George Washington. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the

Gallery

Greek style amphitheatre at PLNU	Profile of the Colosseum	An interior of the Colosseum. Point Loma Nazarene University (PLNU is a private Evangelical Christian Liberal arts college located in San Diego, California, on the	The amphitheatre of Arles (Arelate). Arles (aʁl̥ Provençal Occitan: Arles in both classical and Mistralian norms is a City in the south of France,
Inside of Verona Arena with scenery for an opera performance, summer 1994	A corporate amphitheatre, used for presentations and meetings	Gibson Amphitheatre, a large indoor concert venue	Overton Park Shell in Memphis, Tennessee
Hamar OL-Amfi in Hamar, Norway

See also

• Arena
• Ludus Magnus
• Stadium
• Thingplatz
• List of Roman amphitheatres
• List of contemporary amphitheatres
• List of indoor arenas

External links

• article "Amphitheatrum" (Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities)
• Caerleon amphitheatre
• Chester amphitheatre
• Pula amphitheatre
• Rome: Colosseum at LacusCurtius with Platner article
• Rome: Amphitheatrum Castrense
• France : Nimes Antique Arena