The core of polis life, assembly area and stage for tragedies and plays, the theatre of Syracuse was built on the rocky slope of the Temenite hill in the Neapolis district. Although ancient sources report the existence of a theatre built by the architect Damocopos where Epicharmus' comedies and Aeschylus' tragedies were performed in the 5th century BC, the current building is the result of restoration works carried out under Hiero II. This chronology is supported by the inscriptions with names of deities and members of the royal family engraved in the diazoma, the passage dividing the cavea in two parts. At that time, the whole theatre was enriched with monumental structures, such as large porticoes framing both the upper section of the cavea and the terrace above. With 67 tiers of seats divided by stairways into nine sectors, it was one of the largest in the Greek world.
