The Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus was built around the fourth century BC.
It stands on the western side of Mount Cinortion and was part of a complex of buildings that constituted the Temple of Asclepius, the Greek god of medicine who had in the city of Epidaurus the center of his cult.
The sanctuary dedicated to Asclepius was considered in ancient times the most important health center in all of Greece. Performances of music, singing and dramatic games were held in the theater and were directly related to this cult and therefore it was believed that attending the shows had a beneficial power for the health of soul and body.
The structure of the theater is typical of a classic Hellenistic theater, with three clearly distinct areas: cavea, orchestra and stage.
It currently has 55 bleachers and has a capacity of about 14,000 spectators. Originally there were 34 bleachers and the remaining 21 were added later by the Romans.
Until the mid-nineteenth century the theater was in ruins, hidden by trees and shrubs grown on the slopes of the hill. The first excavations took place in the first half of 1900 and restoration work continued until 2016.
Even today the theater is used for theatrical performances and concerts.
The feature that has made the Theatre of Epidaurus so famous is its acoustics: every sound can be perceived from the stage to the last row at the top. Recent studies have shown that the exceptional acoustics of the Theatre of Epidaurus is due to the limestone with which the bleachers were made and not to the slope of the theater as was believed in the past.
The city of Epidaurus is located about 120 km from Athens in the region of Argolis, the eastern part of the Peloponnese and is connected to Attica by the Corinth Canal.
