euripides’ trojan women ADAPTED BY ROSALBA CLEMENTE and DAWN LANGMAN MUSIC BY PHILIP GRIFFIN and ROSS DALY 12 - 27 NOV THE DUNSTAN PLAYHOUSE GREEK ORTHODOX COMMUNITY OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA INC. The Greek Orthodox Community of South Australia was established in 1930 to create and develop a range of services to assist Greek people. Since then, the Community has provided a variety of cultural, social, welfare, religious and educational programmes further promoting Greek cultural and social life to people in South Australia. CHURCH SERVICES HINDMARSH CHILD CARE CENTRE Greek Orthodox Cathedral of Archangels Michael & Gabriel The Centre cares for children from 7.00am to Greek Orthodox Church of Koimisis Theotokou 6.00pm, Monday-Friday. It provides culturally Greek Orthodox Church of Sts. Constantine & Helen inclusive programmes serving the diverse nature of Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Nicholas the community.The Centre is warm and welcoming Women’s Fellowships with a safe, stimulating environment. RIDLEYTON GREEK HOME FOR THE AGED CULTURAL PROGRAMMES Ridleyton Greek Home for the Aged was established Olympic Dance School by a joint venture project between the Greek School of Greek Music Orthodox Community of S.A. Inc. & the Australian Greek Theatre Group Greek Society for the Care of the Elderly Inc. The Cultural and Religious Festival Home aims to provide care, accommodation and Greek Film Festival of Adelaide services that are compatible with the linguistic and Greek Community Publishing House cultural needs of the elderly residents at Ridleyton Greek Writers Guild Greek Home for the Aged and in the community at Resource Library large. Greek Orthodox Community Choir GREEK COMMUNITY WELFARE SERVICES RELIGIOUS & COMMUNITY RADIO 5EBI-FM Community Services, Support for frail older people A radio programme on 5EBI-FM every Friday from and people with disabilities and/or their carers, 8.00am-9.00am provides listeners with information Elderly programmes,Youth programmes & Services, on the latest community events, news and includes a Emergency Relief. religious program. GREEK LANGUAGE SCHOOLS GREEK WOMEN'S CENTRE Greek Language classes from Reception to The Centre is run by the Greek Women’s Society of Matriculation are provided FREE of charge to over SA Inc “O Taxiarchis”, which was established in 1937. 500 students, after school and on Saturday morning at The Centre provides support, information and various locations around Adelaide. assistance to all Greek women. Olympic House, 288 Franklin Street, Adelaide, South Australia, 5000 Tel: (08) 8231 4307 & (08) 8231 2925 * Facsimile: (08) 8231 7835 Email: [email protected] * Website: www.greekocsa.org.au trojanEURIPIDES’ women ADAPTED BY ROSALBA CLEMENTE and DAWN LANGMAN MUSIC BY PHILIP GRIFFIN and ROSS DALY DIRECTOR Rosalba Clemente MUSIC & CHORAL DIRECTION Philip Griffin SET & LIGHTING DESIGNER Mark Shelton ASSOCIATE DESIGN/COSTUME Gaelle Mellis ASSISTANT DIRECTOR Simone Avramidis SECONDED CHOREOGRAPHER Mia Mason SECONDED SOLDIERS’ CHOREOGRAPHER Valéry Duval MUSICIANS Ross Daly Kelly Thoma Philip Griffin Tunji Beier Zoë Barry PRINCIPALS Dawn Langman In order of appearance Alirio Zavarce This production by State Theatre Emily Hunt Company of South Australia Caroline Mignone opened at The Dunstan Playhouse Gabriello White on November 16, 2004 Roger Newcombe Martha Lott STAGE MANAGER Françoise Piron DEPUTY STAGE MANAGER Paige Goodwin ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER Lisa Osborn HAIR, WIGS & MAKEUP Jana De Biasi HEAD MECHANIST Oleh Kurpita SOUND OPERATOR Gus Macdonald HEAD LX Graham Silver BOARD OPERATOR Mel Jaunay FOLLOW SPOTS Kate Aylward Vanessa Van De Weyer PHOTOGRAPHY Shane Reid THANK YOU TO Nina Berris, Sew Busy Knitwear This production sponsored by for the Soldiers' uniforms. Jim Mavromatis, Vietnam Veterans Federation South Aust. Branch Inc. GREEK ORTHODOX GRAPHIC DESIGN Linehan Scott Design COMMUNITY EURIPIDES’ TROJAN WOMEN PAGE 3 adaption notes rosalba clemente & dawn langman Like those of you who may be familiar with the text of Trojan Women, the adaptors have had to meet it through the numerous available translations. Comparison of these reveals a large spectrum of variation about finer shades of intention but nothing can obscure the power of the central human situations and emotions to reach out across the centuries and shatter us with their relevance today. We wanted to find a language both theatrical and poetic - contemporary but true to its origins. We have striven to honour all of the original images and to live with what are now called ‘classical allusions’, until we could express them in a language meaningful to a 21st century audience. But we have gone a step further. We have not only wanted to tell the original story in a contemporary setting: that is, to record one more example of atrocities which will only act as justification for yet further atrocities in the cycle of revenge. We have also looked with 21st century consciousness and seen through what Euripides has given us seeds for a different set of choices. a note from rosalba clemente DIRECTOR As a child I sat at my mother’s green laminex kitchen table listening to my Zias (Aunts) tell stories about World War II in their little Italian village of Santa Martino, Naples. Some of these stories frightened me – especially one about a young woman abducted from her home by soldiers. In the eighties, living in Sydney as a young actress, many of my friends were political refugees from Czechoslovakia and Chile. Later, I was to make more friends from countries like Bosnia. A month before I gave birth to my first child, I directed Maxim Gorky’s Lower Depths for AC Arts Third Year Acting students. Two weeks after Gabriello was born, I was sitting on our bed with him cradled in my arms. It was a beautiful sunny day and he looked like an angel but I remember going cold with a primal fear I’m sure many new mothers suffer from. I imagined the sound of boots in the driveway, the splintering wood of the back door forced open, strange men in the house armed and angry and me with my beautiful baby, alone. EURIPIDES’ TROJAN WOMEN PAGE 4 Like so many of us, I was well acquainted with notions of terrorism well before it took a step closer to the western world on September 11, 2001. As a woman and a mother, I had lived with it on many subtle levels before it became the catch cry/war cry of the 21st century. Trojan Women ‘visited’ me seven and a half years ago. Even then, the fragments of vision revealed a large chorus of women, music and a new adaptation. Most of the work developing text, music, song, vocal and physical dramaturgy has occurred over the last two years. The chorus of women emerged from community choirs and some arrived as individuals. Our fortnightly workshops this year involved a great deal of structured improvisations, impulse work, experiments towards developing a physical language for the piece and learning the songs. I held similar workshops with the third year acting students from AC Arts on a weekly basis for two terms. We explored the text and deepened the physical dramaturgy and vocal soundscapes that bleed through the written text to create what we call the ‘third voice’ of this production. The commitment of the student and community chorus, including the soldiers, has been central to the development of this work. Their dedication, humour and faith have been unwavering. Without you, none of this would have been possible. You have my unreserved love and respect. And I have been blessed with the kindest and most committed colleagues. Dawn, Philip, Mark, Mia and Gaelle, you are all superbly gifted. Caroline, Alirio, Emily, Martha and Roger, your humanity towers as high as your talent. Special thanks to the profound contribution of Simone, the angelic sounds of Ross, Kelly, Tunji and Zoë and to our dear stage managers, Françoise and Paige, who look after us all so well. To the wonderful tribe at State Theatre – I will never forget you. You are a great team and I have been privileged to work with each and every one of you. I wish you all a continuing great future at State Theatre. I dedicate this production to my mother Caterina Clemente, my grandmother Cristina Troiano, my Zias – Maria Chiera, Carmela Russo, Maria Clemente and Anna Troiano, my mother-in-law Patricia White and finally to all women, children and men who continue to suffer in landscapes of war. May we see the arrival of global peace soon. EURIPIDES’ TROJAN WOMEN PAGE 5 a note from philip griffin COMPOSER In July 1994 I was performing concerts around the then recently unified Germany. A night off in Berlin coincided with a concert by Ross Daly, a man I had heard about for many years - an Irishman who had been recommended to me as “the person” with whom to study Balkan stringed instruments. We met after the concert and I had a lesson with Ross, then a month of study with him in Athens. Living in Israel several years later, I reconnected with Ross at a week-long music symposium. I proposed that Ross and Kelly Thoma make a concert tour of Australia, playing alongside Australian musicians Linsey Pollak, Tunji Beier and myself. Two tours, in 2001 and 2003, have seen that ensemble - now known as Labyrinth - performing around much of Australia, although not in Adelaide. During the season of My Life, My Love in 2002, Rosalba had spoken to me of her desire to stage Trojan Women. I played her some of Ross’ extraordinary compositions. She needed no more persuasion, agreeing that Ross and Kelly would contribute enormously to her imagined production. It was arranged that Ross and Kelly should visit Adelaide during the 2003 season of The Crucible, for which I wrote the music and Rosalba directed.