Theatrum Cuiculi
About
Carved directly into the hillside above the eastern ravine, this theatre seated roughly 3,000 people arranged strictly by rank, with senators and knights in a continuous front block of six rows and ordinary citizens climbing fifteen rows split into six wedges above. Two civic benefactors, Caius Julius Crescens and Caius Julius Didius Crescentianus, financed its construction and dedicated it in 161 CE, the same year Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus took the throne jointly. Its stone cavea remains one of the best-preserved Roman theatres in North Africa. It rose nearly half a century after Trajan's death, well outside the city's founding generation.
What happened here
Seating is the message: the front rows are reserved by law for the town council, and everyone can see who is sitting where. The building is a half-circle against a tall stone backdrop that also serves as a permanent set, and the acoustics are good enough that an actor can be heard without effort. The programme is mime and pantomime more than the old tragedies — bawdy, topical, sometimes politically sharp enough that performers get exiled. Audiences are loud, partisan, and quite prepared to shout a piece down. Awnings and perfumed water sprays are laid on when the sponsor is generous. Shows are attached to religious festivals and paid for by a magistrate who wants the credit, and his name is on the seating.
Sources
Nearby
Roman Maps shows the empire frozen at 11 August 117 CE, the day Trajan died — its moment of greatest territorial extent. Explore the full map →