The Capitoline theatre

Abstract

This article argues that the Capitoline theatre envisioned by Julius Caesar in 45 BC among a series of ambitious projects for the city of Rome was to be located along the NW slope of the hill, between the Arx and the Capitolium, thus facing the Campus Martius and the theatre of Pompey. The latest geological analysis of the hill may even suggest that the building site was cleared: but, apparently, the construction was interrupted upon the dictator’s death. Eventually, for both practical and political reasons, Augustus chose a different location for a completely new project, the future theatre of Marcellus, which therefore should not be included into Caesar’s schemes for Rome. The proposed location of the Capitoline theatre implies a strong influence from the Hellenistic world: in particular, its relationship with the temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus echoes that of the theatre and the Altar of Zeus on the acropolis of Pergamon. Further considerations flesh out Caesar’s project in an effort to establish when the theatre was conceived, why its location was chosen, and what decisions were made, thus shedding new light on the unprecedented building campaign envisioned by the dictator. These considerations constitute the tools to access histories and ideologies which appear unattainable through the literary sources alone, thus allowing for a broader understanding of Roman architecture and urbanism at the end of the Republican era.