arena’s page study guide

Contents The Play Meet the Playwright “O Gods, I pray you, change me; Meet the Poet: Ovid & His make me something else; transform me entirely; Masterpiece let me step out of my own heart.” Greek Gods and Goddesses –Myrrha Storytelling and the Universal Pool on Stage! Mary Zimmerman’s Process Three Big Questions Additional Resources

The Play

Midas desires the power to turn every- thing he touches into gold. The god Apollo leaves behind his half-mortal son. Orpheus, a great musician, fol- lows the girl he loves all the way to the Underworld to bargain for her life.

This is the stuff of myth. Such stories call listeners to sing, cry, pray, seek meaning, and change. “Metamorphoses” means changes or transformations. These stories of meta- morphoses have existed in many forms for thousands of years.

In this theatrical adaptation, a simple pool of water is the set for the inter- play between Greek gods and mortals. In these clashes, meetings and part- ings between the gods and humans, who changes? What compels us to change? What has the power to change us? What endures? Metamorphoses l Now playing in the Fichandler February 8 -March 17, 2013 written and directed by Mary Zimmerman based on the original work by Ovid a co-production with Lookingglass Theatre Major support for this program is provided by the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation.

Funded in part by the D.C. Commission on the Arts & Humanities, an agency supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. Meet the Meet the Greek Gods Playwright: Poet: and Goddesses

Mary Zimmerman

And I just have faith that if you allow yourself to be trusting, to sort Ovid & His Masterpiece of forget about your past hurts, your past ublius Ovidius Naso A quick review of the gods and goddesses wounds, that’s the P(Ovid) was one of Rome’s most famous poets. His will be helpful as you see well-known and chance at which you lesser-known myths in the play. will find love.” father brought him up to be a politician, but Ovid wanted to be a poet. He made a – King of the gods and god of sky, order s a young girl in Nebraska, name for himself reciting Zeus and fate, known for having many affairs with Mary Zimmerman loved his poetry aloud in public A women (both mortal and immortal) to read. Among the many places. Completed in 8 AD, classics she read at a young Metamorphoses is made up of age were The Odyssey and Apollo – God of prophecy, music and light, who 15 volumes of poems, and is drives the chariot of the sun across the sky Edith Hamilton’s Mythology. a telling of how the universe came to be. Written in Latin, – Goddess of beauty and love These stories and mythology Aphrodite it combined myths and brought her to this conclu- traditions of the Greeks and – God of the sea and as sion: “what these myths are Poseidon Romans. Most of its stories temperamental as the waters he ruled really about…is that life equals are about human and god change, it equals loss. And interaction – how humans Hades – God of the Underworld, often pictured you have to embrace it. You were rewarded for respecting with his favorite pet, a three-headed dog have to sort of go with it.” the temperamental gods, and how they suffered when they Hermes – Messenger of the gods, wears Zimmerman attended didn’t. winged sandals Northwestern University, studying theater and even- Although he wrote much Dionysus – God of wine and fertility, known tually earning her PhD. She about the gods, Ovid wasn’t for his wild and destructive celebrations is currently a professor, a conservative. His poetry director and playwright in was so erotic that most Eros – Better known by his Roman name, Chicago. She often adapts historians believe Caesar “Cupid,” god of love and sexual desire literary works for the stage. Augustus banished him from In addition to Metamorphoses Rome because of it. Even his Vertumnus – God of seasons and change (for which she won a Tony stories about the gods were l Award for directing in 2002), often considered a touch too she has adapted Homer’s humorous and entertaining. Odyssey, Leonardo da Vinci’s Notebooks, and the Chinese Ovid died 10 years after he novel Journey to the West. was banished from Rome. l You may have seen her pro- duction of The Arabian Nights at Arena Stage in 2011. l Water of Life ater is central to life Pool on Stage! Wand, literally, at the center of this play. What ary Zimmerman’s Metamorphoses is l The pool contains 3,584 gallons of water, is the importance of water famous its pool of water. The technicians weighing in at just under 30,000 lbs. M historically, today and in at Arena Stage have been building this pool in l It is held up by 65 steel columns and heavy the future? What stories our historic theater-in-the-round, the wooden platforms and is lined with the same of water do you find in Fichandler Stage. According rubber used for outdoor ponds. different religions? Water to Arena’s technical l The construction of the pool took three is also closely linked director, Scott weeks plus overtime for eight people. to transformation. For Schreck, this pool l The most expensive part is the drain matting example, it has multiple will be the largest (to keep people from slipping!), costing states: solid, liquid and in any of the about $7,000. gas. It is used in religious productions of l The challenges of the project included rites, like baptism, to purify the play. building the components that could fit or represent purification. through the backstage door and then be In what other ways is water assembled like a puzzle in the theater and connected to change? then the challenge of controlling water. The production requires it be as still as possible. l Activity: What can be created on stage is limited only by your imagination and problem solving abilities. Imagine the most extravagant, impossible set for your favorite play or story. Then, in small groups, brainstorm a way to make it possible.

Storytelling and the Universal Common Archetypes etamorphoses has familiar characters. Over time, they stopped The Great Flood Mbeing individuals and became symbols or archetypes. An The Underworld archetype is an original that has been imitated. Such characters, The Hero settings or stories are easily recognizable, because they appear The Trickster again and again across many cultures. Archetypes are part of a The Scapegoat human storytelling vocabulary. The Quest The Tree Although Zimmerman makes her characters specific, she’s also The Mother working broadly through archetype. This style of storytelling rein- The Witch forces that myths can relate to any time or place. As you watch the What do these archetypes symbol- play, note which myth most resonates with you. ize? Where do you find them in lit- erature, film and modern stories? Activity: As a class, make a list of arche- types that is as comprehensive as possible. Adaptation of Greek Myths “Myth has two main functions, the first is to answer the sort of awkward questions that children ask, such as ‘Who made the world? How will it end? Who was the first man? Where do souls go after death?’ …The second function of myth is to justify an existing social system and account of traditional rites and customs.” – Robert Graves, poet and scholar

nlike the Torah, Bible, Koran or the enced by the work that came before his l Plays by Aeschylus , Sophocles and UHindu Vedas, there is no answer-all text or her own. Among the most influential Euripides, which feature many of the in relation to Greek mythology. The stories texts, aside from Metamorphoses, are: mythological figures. have undergone centuries of adaptation. l l Homer’s The Odyssey and The Iliad, The earliest Greek myths began as an which tell the mythical story of the oral tradition. The Romans modeled Trojan War and the gods’ involvement. many of their religious practices after Activity: Choose one of the the Greeks. Therefore, many writers l The poet Hesiod’s Theogeony, which lesser-known myths and write and scholars from both civilizations is one of the first explanations of how your own adaptation of it. It wrote poems about the gods and god- the Greeks thought their world came need not have a modern setting. desses. Each writer or artist was influ- to be. Helpful Hints for Theater Audiences

As an audience member at the theater, YOU are part of the show! Just as you Mary Zimmerman’s Process see and hear the actors onstage, they can see and hear you in the audience. “The process goes like this: I fall in love, or have always been in love, with To help the performers do their best, a particular text, or an episode that I happen to know from a particular please remember the following: text, or the back jacket cover description of a text in the hands of a friend Arrive at least 30 minutes early. I run into…or, in one case, the title of a text.” – Mary Zimmerman Visit the restroom before the show starts. hen most actors walk a concept or world for who move well. The Before the show begins, turn off your Winto a first rehearsal, the piece. With this actors often don’t know cell phone, watch alarms, pagers they expect to receive a framework in place, she what roles they will play. and other electronic devices. If script. At a first rehearsal then works with the actors. This emerges during the anything rings by accident, shut it off with Mary Zimmerman, This work in rehearsal creative process. immediately. however, the script is provides further inspiration Save food and drinks for the lobby. nowhere to be found. She and images to help her There is no eating or drinking inside says, “My imagination does shape the story into a the theater. not work that way.” final, but flexible, script. Walk to and from your seat - no running in the theater! Do not talk, whisper, sing or hum. Do not use cell phones for calls, text messages, pictures or games. This approach results in Keep your feet on the floor, not on a style that is known for the seat in front of you. being open, fluid, lively Avoid getting up during a show and rich in imagery. because it distracts your neighbors “No script” does not mean Due to her collaborative and the performers. If you must leave, wait for a scene change, then exit “no plan.” Zimmerman style, Zimmerman chooses quietly and quickly. begins rehearsal having actors who work well already researched the together. She auditions Performers appreciate enthusiastic text and knowing which actors in groups of 10 or applause rather than whistling or shouting. stories she’d like to 12 to observe how they tell. She has met with improvise and cooperate. Cameras and videotape are designers to develop She also seeks actors prohibited because they are distracting to the performers. Enjoy the show! How do stories change us or have the ONE power to change us and the world? Three Big two Why do we transform? How do stories reflect Questions three communities and cultures? Additional Resources Books & Poetry Metamorphoses by Ovid Mythology by Edith Hamilton 1101 Sixth Street, SW The Odyssey by Homer Washington, DC 20024 The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan Phone: (202) 554-9066 American Gods by Neil Gaiman Fax: (202) 488-4056 “Apollo” by Morris Bishop “Leda and the Swan” by William Butler Yeats Written by Noelle Viñas Edited by Rebecca Campana On the Web Production photos courtesy of Lookingglass Theatre Study Guide: Lookingglass Theatre Company lookingglasstheatre.org/studyguide/MetamorphosesStudyGuide.pdf Collection of Poetry based on Greek Mythology: Visit www.arenastage.org www.mythologyteacher.com/Myth%20Inspired%20Poems.pdf for more information on Greek Mythology: www.theoi.com/greek-mythology/greek-gods.html Mary Zimmerman on American Theatre Wing: “Playwright, Director, Choreographer” Arena Stage productions (video): americantheatrewing.org/wit/detail/playwright_and_director_04_02 and educational opportunities.