The Roman theatre of Philippopolis is one of the world’s best-preserved ancient Roman theatres, located in the city center of modern Plovdiv, once the ancient city of Philippopolis. It was constructed in the 1st century AD, probably during the reign of Domitian.
The spectator seats are orientated to the south, towards the ancient city in the lowland and the Rhodope Mountains. In outline, the theatre is a semi-circle with an outer diameter of 82 meters. The theatre itself is divided into the seating section (cavea) and the stage (orchestra). The cavea, the area in which people gathered, is hollowed out of a hill or slope, while the outer radian seats required structural support and solid retaining walls. The cavea was not roofed. The spectator seats surround the stage (orchestra), which has the shape of a horseshoe, 26.64 meters long, includes 28 concentric rows of marble seats, divided into two tiers by an aisle (diazoma).
