Odeon of Lyon
I always thought that Odeon was a name usually for cinemas. I was surprised to know that it is actually a name for a Roman Theater. The main difference of an odeon versus a theater was that odeons are smaller than normal Roman theaters and it usually has a roof. This was because the acoustics of the roof would provide for better appreciating singing and poetry that was commonly done in odeons. It is amazing that the ancient Romans would have already know about acoustic properties and how to properly consider them when building structures.
Ruins at the Odeon of Lyon
The old roof of the odeon in Lyon is long gone. It was a shame but it is probably because of the material which was used to construct the roof. It might have been difficult to build one out of stone like the rest of the odeon. Considering that the rest of the odeon is in excellent condition, it was a shame that they could not add back the lost roof. Even now, the Odeon is still in use for modern day performances. It would be great to see a performance here and see how it holds up. Of course, parts of the odeon have been restored so that they would be usable by modern day patrons, but there are still parts which have been left as they were. This is most especially true for the back of the odeon.
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