Iphigenia 2.0
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An Examination of the Correlation Between the Justification and Glorification of War in Charles Mee's Iphigenia
An Examination of the Correlation Between the Justification and Glorification of War in Charles Mee’s Iphigenia 2.0: A Director’s Approach Caroline Donica Table of Contents Chapter One: Charles Mee and the History Behind Iphigenia 2.0 4 Introduction 4 The Life and Works of Charles Mee 4 Just War 8 Production History and Reception 11 Survey of Literature 13 Conclusion 15 Chapter Two: Play Analysis 16 Introduction 16 Synopsis 16 Given Circumstances 24 Previous Action 26 Dialogue and Imagery 27 Character Analysis 29 Idea and Theme 34 Conclusion 36 Chapter Three: The Design Process 37 Introduction 37 Production Style 37 Director’s Approach 38 Choice of Stage 38 Collaboration with Designers 40 Set Design 44 Costumes 46 Makeup and Hair 50 Properties 52 Lighting 53 Sound 55 Conclusion 56 Chapter Four: The Rehearsal Process 57 Introduction 57 Auditions and Casting 57 Rehearsals and Acting Strategies 60 Technical and Dress Rehearsals 64 Performances 65 Conclusion 67 Chapter Five: Reflection 68 Introduction 68 Design 68 Staging and Timing 72 Acting 73 Self-Analysis 77 Conclusion 80 Appendices 82 A – Photos Featuring the Set Design 83 B – Photos Featuring the Costume Design 86 C – Photos Featuring the Lighting Design 92 D – Photos Featuring the Concept Images 98 Works Consulted 102 Donica 4 Chapter One Charles Mee and the History Behind Iphigenia 2.0 Introduction Charles Mee’s Iphigenia 2.0 is a significant work in recent theatre history. The play was widely recognized and repeatedly produced for its unique take on contemporary issues, popular culture, and current events set within a framework of ancient myths and historical literature. -
Iphigenia in Aulis by Euripides Translated by Nicholas Rudall Directed by Charles Newell
STUDY GUIDE Photo of Mark L. Montgomery, Stephanie Andrea Barron, and Sandra Marquez by joe mazza/brave lux, inc Sponsored by Iphigenia in Aulis by Euripides Translated by Nicholas Rudall Directed by Charles Newell SETTING The action takes place in east-central Greece at the port of Aulis, on the Euripus Strait. The time is approximately 1200 BCE. CHARACTERS Agamemnon father of Iphigenia, husband of Clytemnestra and King of Mycenae Menelaus brother of Agamemnon Clytemnestra mother of Iphigenia, wife of Agamemnon Iphigenia daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra Achilles son of Peleus Chorus women of Chalcis who came to Aulis to see the Greek army Old Man servant of Agamemnon, was given as part of Clytemnestra’s dowry Messenger ABOUT THE PLAY Iphigenia in Aulis is the last existing work of the playwright Euripides. Written between 408 and 406 BCE, the year of Euripides’ death, the play was first produced the following year in a trilogy with The Bacchaeand Alcmaeon in Corinth by his son, Euripides the Younger, and won the first place at the Athenian City Dionysia festival. Agamemnon Costume rendering by Jacqueline Firkins. 2 SYNOPSIS At the start of the play, Agamemnon reveals to the Old Man that his army and warships are stranded in Aulis due to a lack of sailing winds. The winds have died because Agamemnon is being punished by the goddess Artemis, whom he offended. The only way to remedy this situation is for Agamemnon to sacrifice his daughter, Iphigenia, to the goddess Artemis. Agamemnon then admits that he has sent for Iphigenia to be brought to Aulis but he has changed his mind. -
Study Questions Helen of Troycomp
Study Questions Helen of Troy 1. What does Paris say about Agamemnon? That he treated Helen as a slave and he would have attacked Troy anyway. 2. What is Priam’s reaction to Paris’ action? What is Paris’ response? Priam is initially very upset with his son. Paris tries to defend himself and convince his father that he should allow Helen to stay because of her poor treatment. 3. What does Cassandra say when she first sees Helen? What warning does she give? Cassandra identifies Helen as a Spartan and says she does not belong there. Cassandra warns that Helen will bring about the end of Troy. 4. What does Helen say she wants to do? Why do you think she does this? She says she wants to return to her husband. She is probably doing this in an attempt to save lives. 5. What does Menelaus ask of King Priam? Who goes with him? Menelaus asks for his wife back. Odysseus goes with him. 6. How does Odysseus’ approach to Priam differ from Menelaus’? Who seems to be more successful? Odysseus reasons with Priam and tries to appeal to his sense of propriety; Menelaus simply threatened. Odysseus seems to be more successful; Priam actually considers his offer. 7. Why does Priam decide against returning Helen? What offer does he make to her? He finds out that Agamemnon sacrificed his daughter for safe passage to Troy; Agamemnon does not believe that is an action suited to a king. Priam offers Helen the opportunity to become Helen of Troy. 8. What do Agamemnon and Achilles do as the rest of the Greek army lands on the Trojan coast? They disguise themselves and sneak into the city. -
Elektra 2017
B Y J ANE G ANAHL The Many Faces of S E G A M I N A M E G Elektra D I R B ou may have seen her in the form of Jennifer YGarner’s sword-wielding assassin in the 2005 film Elektra , on stage as a bitter Civil War spin - ster in Eugene o’Neill’s Mourning Becomes Electra , in the words of Sylvia Plath’s controversial poem “Electra on Azalea Path,” in the famed portrait by Frederic Leighton, Electra at the Tomb of Agamemnon , and indeed, in Richard Strauss’ opera Elektra* . K U , In the 2,000-plus years since her name was first S M U etched on paper, Electra—the myth, the character—has E S U inspired dozens, if not hundreds, of works of theater, lit - M L L erature, art, opera, and psychoanalysis. Around a cen - U H , tury ago, Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung suggested there y R E L was an “Electra complex” suffered by many little girls L A G who were in love with their fathers in competition with T R A their mothers, thus tainting forever the innocent tag S N E “Daddy’s little girl.” R E F Even today, the vengeful, father-worshipping anti-heroine / S E of Sophocles’ tragedy continues to fascinate and perturb G A M I us—perhaps in part because her story of familial murder N A and mayhem makes Game of Thrones pale in comparison. M E G In the years following the Trojan War, Electra has waited D I R B for nearly a decade for the return of her brother orestes *When referring to the Sophocles play, the standard English spelling is “Electra.” “Elektra” is the German spelling. -
Narrating Myth
9781405126342_4_001.qxd 23/01/2009 11:37 AM Page 10 1 Narrating Myth When Paris came, I let him in. What happened afterwards we all know – at least, we know the events, but some of us are at a loss to interpret them (Helen in John Erskine, The Private Life of Helen of Troy) To tell a story is to try to understand it (H. Porter Abbott, Narrative) Stories never live alone. They are branches of a family that we have to trace back and forward (Roberto Calasso, The Marriage of Cadmus and Harmony) Whose Story? In her wide-ranging account of Helen of Troy as “goddess, princess, whore,” Bettany Hughes writes that “Helen found in Homer the most bril- liant of biographers,” a sentiment expressed more specifically elsewhere when she describes the Iliad as “Homer’s account of Helen” (2005: 343, xxxv). Hughes is but the most recent of many commentators who hold that the Trojan War is Helen’s story and that the Iliad is “about” Helen (e.g., West 1975: 3; Pollard 1965: 22). In fact what is noticeable about the Iliad is how little itCOPYRIGHTED has to do with Helen, or rather MATERIAL how little it has to say about Helen, who is confined to three episodes in books 3, 6, and 24. In book 3 she appears on the battlements with Priam, identifying the Greek war- riors for the Trojan king. In book 6 she criticizes Paris. In book 24 she is the third of the three female voices mourning Hector.1 But in another sense Helen is everywhere in the Iliad, for without Helen there would be no war; no war, no story. -
Iphigenia in Tauris.Intro
IPHIGENIA IN TAURIS In this introduction, I will 1) give an overview of the plot, 2) consider some of the unique features of the play, and 3) discuss the process I went through in adapting the play. Euripides’ Iphigenia offers a different take on the fall of the house of Atreus. Here is the story in its classic form as told in Aeschylus’ Oresteia. 1) The sons of Atreus, Agamemnon and Menelaus, become kings of Mycenae and Sparta and take as wives the sisters Clytemnestra and Helen. 2) Paris’s abducts Helen, igniting the Trojan War; the Greeks navy is led by Agamemnon. 3) Before they can sail for Troy, the fleet is grounded at the Port of Aulis, and Agamemnon is told that the goddess Artemis will not let him sail unless he sacrifices his daughter, Iphigenia. 4) Agamemnon instructs Iphigenia to come to Aulis where she will be married to Achilles, but when she arrives, he sacrifices her. 5) While the Greeks fight at Troy for ten years, Clytemnestra, enraged at Agamemnon’s murder of their daughter, takes a lover. 6) When Agamemnon returns from Troy, his wife kills him. 7) Many years later, Agamemnon’s son, Orestes returns home and, with the help of his sister, Electra (and the guidance of Apollo), kills his mother and her lover. 8) Because he is guilty of matricide, Orestes is chased by the Furies, but Apollo and Athena intercede for him, and he is declared innocent at a trial held in Athens. To this tragic plot, Euripides makes two important changes. -
Aeschylusaeschylus
AeschylusAeschylus •The Life and Times of Aeschylus •Aeschylus’ Contributions to Greek Tragedy • Overview of Myth: The House of Atreus •Aeschylus’ Agamemnon AeschylusAeschylus LifeLife andand TimesTimes •after winning both the Persian Wars, the Athenians’ spirits soared •they threw themselves into the arts with unprecedented energy and confidence • tragedy was among those arts, one which received much public attention AeschylusAeschylus LifeLife andand TimesTimes •the first tragedian whose work survives is AeschylusAeschylus (ca. 525 BCE ‐ 456 BCE) • according to his tombstone, Aeschylus fought in the Persian Wars •but it does not mention his drama • according to him, then, his most important achievement in life was fighting for freedom, not writing plays AeschylusAeschylus LifeLife andand TimesTimes •Aeschylus won the Dionysia for the first time in 484 BCE •he produced his last known trilogy in 458 BCE: Oresteia (including Agamemnon) •he wrote and produced over eighty plays during his life •thus, he entered the Dionysia at least twenty times AeschylusAeschylus ContributionsContributions toto DramaDrama •but only seven of his plays have survived •most in school texts, cf. Epic of Gilgamesh • nevertheless, we can see that he was the most important playwright of his day: –he won five or more victories at the Dionysia –later playwrights often referenced and imitated—and satirized!—his work –the audiences of the next generation enjoyed revivals of his drama AeschylusAeschylus ContributionsContributions toto DramaDrama •Aeschylus introduced -
Transgendering Clytemnestra Jennifer Rae Mcdermott
Transgendering Clytemnestra Jennifer Rae McDermott Many Greek tragedies have mysteriously evaded the controlling influence of time; they are read today with as much admiration and emotion as they would have inspired in their first audiences. Works immor - tal, they rekindle in modern readers the passionate fires of ancient times and peoples. Two names still common on modern lips are those of the great poets Aeschylus and Homer. While Aeschylus penned tragedies for the theatre in the early fifth century BC, Homer, in the eighth century BC, composed epics of Greek culture that encompassed in their scope “material for [many] tragedies.” 1 The relationship between these forms of narrative is evidenced in the shared myth of Agamemnon’s murder by Clytemnestra and Aegisthus in both Homer’s epic poem Odyssey and Aeschylus’ tragedy Oresteia . In comparing the different angles with which these poets choose to treat the same tale, certain discrepancies are imme - diately apparent regarding the role, treatment, and function of Clytemnestra. I will argue that the differences in Clytemnestra’s characterization in these two works are predom - inantly related to gender: whereas in Aeschylus’ work she is cast as manly, Homer casts her as womanly. In Oresteia , she commands the play; in Odyssey , she remains but a shadowy figure on the outskirts of the story. This is evidenced, first in the immediacy and manner of her portrayal, second, in her domi - nance or subservience to men, and third, in her degree of responsibility for Agamemnon’s murder. Furthermore, these gender related distinctions correspond to Clytemnestra’s function in each text; Aeschylus creates Clytemnestra as a tragically human heroine, whereas Homer uses her, coupled to Aegisthus, to foil the central situation of Penelope and the Suitors. -
An Examination of the Gender Roles of Clytemnestra and Electra
Rebellious Performances: An Examination of the Gender Roles of Clytemnestra and Electra Bethany Nickerson Honors Thesis-English Department Advisor: Jeffrey DeShell, English Cathy Preston, English John Gibert, Classics March 22, 2012 Nickerson 1 Abstract This thesis seeks to create an understanding of the mythological characters of Clytemnestra and Electra as they were portrayed by Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides. By examining these plays in conjunction with the historical setting in which they were written and performed, this discussion shows how these two female characters play masculine roles in order to achieve their desires. These fictional women reveal how the real-life women of Classical Athens, were always caught in a double bind due to the patriarchal society in which they lived. This thesis examines the plays of these playwrights in their original Greek in order to examine how these women play masculine roles though their actions as well as the very words they use. This discussion ends with an examination of these female characters in relation to the male character Orestes which shows how these women are ultimately unsuccessful in their attempts to achieve their desires because they are, in the end, women. Nickerson 2 From the haunting song of the seductive sirens to the killing glare of Medusa and from the terrifying features of the chimera to the deadly riddles of the Sphinx, the feminine often appears in Greek mythology as perilous and evil. In the literature and myths of the Greeks from the earliest poems of the archaic period to the sophisticated dramas of Classical Athens, there emerges a pervasive fear of women. -
The Robe of Iphigenia in Agamemnon Anne Lebeck
The Robe of Iphigenia in "Agamemnon" Lebeck, Anne Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies; Spring 1964; 5, 1; ProQuest pg. 35 The Robe of Iphigenia in Agamemnon Anne Lebeck HE CHORAL LYRIC (104-263) immediately following the anapestic Tparodos of Agamemnonl closes with a description of the sacrifice at Aulis in which the robes of Iphigenia playa prominent part (7T€:TTAotaL 7TEpL7TETTJ [233J; KPOKOU f3acptx~ 0' €~ 7T€OOJl x€ouaa [239J). There are two interpretations of the lines in question. Most scholars regard the verbal adjective 7T€PL7TET~~ in line 233 as passive, the dative 7T€7TAOLGL as instrumental, and translate "wrapped round in her robes" (Fraenkel, Headlam, Mazon, Smyth, Verrall). Line 239 is taken to mean that Iphigenia disrobes completely,2 "her saffron garment fall ing on the ground." Professor Lloyd-Jones3 recently offered a more convincing interpretation than the earlier view that Iphigenia sheds her peplos. Line 239, which means literally "pouring dye of saffron toward the ground," describes Iphigenia raised above the altar; from her body, held horizontally,4 the robe trails down. In the same article Lloyd-Jones ingeniously suggests that 7TEPL7TET~~ is active, the robes those of Agamemnon. Iphigenia kneels before her father in supplication, "with her arms flung about his robes."5 Pro fessor Page remarks, "This interpretation has great advantages: the thought and the language are now both of a normal type .... "6 Such an advantage is questionable, since neither the thought nor the lang uage of this passage are normal. Rather they are lyrical: disconnected phrases follow one another in rapid succession, evoking a strange and dreamlike picture. -
The Threefold Sacrifice of Iphigenia in Euripides' Iphigenia in Aulis
Personal, paternal, patriotic: the threefold sacrifice of Iphigenia in Euripides’ Iphigenia in Aulis Dina Bacalexi To cite this version: Dina Bacalexi. Personal, paternal, patriotic: the threefold sacrifice of Iphigenia in Euripides’ Iphigenia in Aulis. Humanitas, Imprensa da Universidade de Coimbra, 2016, 68, pp.51 - 76. 10.14195/2183- 1718_68_3. halshs-01640103 HAL Id: halshs-01640103 https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01640103 Submitted on 20 Nov 2017 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Personal, paternal, patriotic: the threefold sacrifice of Iphigenia in Euripides’ Iphigenia in Aulis Author(s: Bacalexi, Dina Published by: Imprensa da Universidade de Coimbra Persistent URL: URI:http://hdl.handle.net/10316.2/40818 DOI: DOI:https://doi.org/10.14195/2183-1718_68_3 Accessed : 10-Feb-2017 12:27:36 The browsing of UC Digitalis, UC Pombalina and UC Impactum and the consultation and download of titles contained in them presumes full and unreserved acceptance of the Terms and Conditions of Use, available at https://digitalis.uc.pt/en/terms_and_conditions. As laid out in the Terms and Conditions of Use, the download of restricted-access titles requires a valid licence, and the document(s) should be accessed from the IP address of the licence-holding institution. -
Mythology, Greek, Roman Allusions
Advanced Placement Tool Box Mythological Allusions –Classical (Greek), Roman, Norse – a short reference • Achilles –the greatest warrior on the Greek side in the Trojan war whose mother tried to make immortal when as an infant she bathed him in magical river, but the heel by which she held him remained vulnerable. • Adonis –an extremely beautiful boy who was loved by Aphrodite, the goddess of love. By extension, an “Adonis” is any handsome young man. • Aeneas –a famous warrior, a leader in the Trojan War on the Trojan side; hero of the Aeneid by Virgil. Because he carried his elderly father out of the ruined city of Troy on his back, Aeneas represents filial devotion and duty. The doomed love of Aeneas and Dido has been a source for artistic creation since ancient times. • Aeolus –god of the winds, ruler of a floating island, who extends hospitality to Odysseus on his long trip home • Agamemnon –The king who led the Greeks against Troy. To gain favorable wind for the Greek sailing fleet to Troy, he sacrificed his daughter Iphigenia to the goddess Artemis, and so came under a curse. After he returned home victorious, he was murdered by his wife Clytemnestra, and her lover, Aegisthus. • Ajax –a Greek warrior in the Trojan War who is described as being of colossal stature, second only to Achilles in courage and strength. He was however slow witted and excessively proud. • Amazons –a nation of warrior women. The Amazons burned off their right breasts so that they could use a bow and arrow more efficiently in war.