PHENOMENON OF THEATER AND CINEMA IN THE LIGHT OF ANCIENT CULTURAL HERITAGE

Abstract

It is hard to imagine the modern world without theatrical performance and cinematic art. Their impact on public consciousness cannot be overstated. In the 21st century, theater and cinema remain among the most influential forms of art, not only reflecting sociocultural processes but also actively shaping the values, worldviews, and aesthetic orientations of society. In contemporary culture – characterized by hybridity, dynamism, and the growing influence of digital technologies – both theatrical and cinematic arts are acquiring new meanings and forms, becoming important communicative platforms. Theater, while preserving its ritualistic and dramatic foundations, increasingly integrates elements of performativity, multimedia, and social engagement. It unites the realities of multiple artistic disciplines: dramaturgy, directing, acting, and more. Cinema, in turn, as a mass art form, not only entertains but also fulfills educational, critical, and artistic functions, creating and enriching a space for diverse forms of communication, including intercultural dialogue. Both art forms respond to global challenges such as war, pandemics, and ecological crises, while simultaneously rethinking human identity, memory, and the future. Accordingly, the aim of the article is to analyze the phenomenon of theatre and cinema in the context of the ancient cultural heritage, with a particular focus on ancient tragedy as a universal artistic model that integrates aesthetic experience, mythological thinking, and ontological reflections on the nature of human existence. The research methodology combines descriptive, hermeneutic, and phenomenological methods with the principle of historicism. This methodological framework has made it possible to determine the specific features of the formation and development of theatre and cinema, as well as to outline their place in contemporary culture. Scientific novelty. Theater and cinema, within the framework of world culture, represent a complex sociocultural phenomenon. This phenomenon is marked by their ability to generate new opportunities through the creative interaction of theatrical and cinematic arts, demonstrating the effectiveness of integrating these forms. Such achievements are made possible through profound research conducted by leading global theorists of theater and cinema. The most renowned theorist of ancient theatrical art is Aristotle. In the context of critical studies of theater and cinema, reference to Aristotle’s Poetics remains relevant, driven by the need to comprehend classical aesthetic principles within the modern cultural space. Friedrich Nietzsche’s philosophy, offering a profound reinterpretation of the Dionysian myth, brings to the forefront the irrational, ecstatic, and transcendent aspects of creativity, manifested in both classical tragedy and the experimental cinema of the 20th and 21st centuries. According to Nietzsche, tragedy is not merely an artistic form but a means of reconciling human consciousness with the inevitability of suffering through the aesthetic experience of beauty. Myth, in turn, is not a static archetype but a dynamic instrument for shaping cultural identity, continually renewed through the artistic act. Through myth and tragedy, Nietzsche restores to European culture an awareness of the deep irrational energy that underlies both creativity and human existence. Conclusions. In contemporary theatre and cinema, the same aesthetic and philosophical models that originated in antiquity continue to operate, yet they acquire new forms through technical means, virtual environments, and the transformation of modes of perception. This demonstrates the continuity of cultural memory and the necessity of a systematic, interdisciplinary interpretation of artistic practices in the light of classical sources.