The Greek Tragedy
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Westford Academy Semi-Final
9:25 Opening Ceremonies
9:30 North Reading Medea 10:30 Chelmsford 39 Steps 11:15 LUNCH 12:30 Boston Arts 3014 1:30 Leominster Bits and Pieces 2:15 BREAK 2:55 GREETINGS! 3:00 Westford Academy The Hairy Ape 4:00 Everett Good Life (original) 5:00 Clean classrooms and prepared awards 5:30 Festival Forum (circle time) 6:00 Dinner and dance 7:00 Awards ? |
Directors Notes
We are born in terror and trembling. In the face of our terror before the uncontrollable chaos of the universe, we label as much as we can with language in the hopes that once we name something we no longer fear it… I believe that theatre’s function is to remind us of the big human issues, to remind us of our terror and our humanity. In our quotidian lives, we live in constant repetitions of habitual patterns. Many of us sleep through our lives. Art should offer experiences that alter these patterns, awaken what is asleep, and remind us of our original terrors.- Anne Bogart in Anne Bogart: Viewpoints
Medea has done for me what Ms. Bogart hopes theatre can do. It has awakened things in my dark places, activated the fear I sometimes have as a mother of two boys, allowed me to reflect upon my position as a women in an (often) male-dominated society. Perhaps it will do the same for you, or differently if we do not share the same characteristics, but I will not tell you exactly when and how lest I spoil it for you.
I hope that the actors have also been moved, changed, effected by the process of playing the play. It is certainly something that I attempt to achieve as a teacher and a director. If they are not, how can we expect the audience to be?
The set needs not, can not, overwhelm the action. It exists in a nebulous setting, absent of anything that helps the audience to identify it as this or that place, ultimately creating a place where everyone could exist. Through the use of black and white there seems to be a simple division of good and evil, but none of the characters can claim to occupy either zone exclusively. Medea is apparently the worst of all, but is the rage she feels and decisions she makes of her own design, or is it more the result of how love and justice have been balanced against betrayal and political maneuvering? What choices are left when all reasonable choices are taken away?
The poppies provide some color, though they exist more on a symbolic level then a sensory one. If you have ever seen a poppy in its process of growth, you have observed that just before blooming the bud hangs its head, heavy with the promise of blossom. In fact, the cocooned bud seems to droop in somnolence, as if enchanted. That poppies have been used as representations of death and (sometimes) rebirth is no surprise, with the Victorians absorbing Greco-Roman culture to such an extent that the flowers would often appear on tombstones.
Most of us are familiar with the hallucinogenic/narcotic properties of the poppy (opium is derived from the Chinese poppy). The ancient Greeks understood this, and so we see a link to Morpheus, the god of dreams. Morpheus lived in his own world- a world of sweet dreams, fantasy and complete non-adherence to traditional reality and messages wafting up through our dreams like a sweet fragrance - waiting to be recognized.
The feathers of white and black show the transformation of Medea’s psyche and how incredibly delicate and fragile she is.
While Robinson Jeffers attempted to modernize Medea’s language, we have tried to do it with costume. Medea and the nurse come from the far end of the world and their dress of browns and bronze captures them as the outsiders they are. The chorus, with their dresses of black and white (again duplicity), red make up and goth styling help to emphasize the grotesque, mysterious, and the (potentially) desolate. Creon’s clothing and makeup are sharp, form fitting and to the point, a visual representation of his personality. Jason looks different, feels different, as he constantly tries to fit into a world and reality that he believes is the best.
How must women find themselves in a world of men? When no one is innocent how shall people be judged? Who shall do the judging? Is what results justice? All of these questions are spoken to by Medea and I hope that are raised within you. While I do not desire you to necessarily feel terror, I do wish that the actors are able to shake you from your sleep, at least for a little while.
Medea has done for me what Ms. Bogart hopes theatre can do. It has awakened things in my dark places, activated the fear I sometimes have as a mother of two boys, allowed me to reflect upon my position as a women in an (often) male-dominated society. Perhaps it will do the same for you, or differently if we do not share the same characteristics, but I will not tell you exactly when and how lest I spoil it for you.
I hope that the actors have also been moved, changed, effected by the process of playing the play. It is certainly something that I attempt to achieve as a teacher and a director. If they are not, how can we expect the audience to be?
The set needs not, can not, overwhelm the action. It exists in a nebulous setting, absent of anything that helps the audience to identify it as this or that place, ultimately creating a place where everyone could exist. Through the use of black and white there seems to be a simple division of good and evil, but none of the characters can claim to occupy either zone exclusively. Medea is apparently the worst of all, but is the rage she feels and decisions she makes of her own design, or is it more the result of how love and justice have been balanced against betrayal and political maneuvering? What choices are left when all reasonable choices are taken away?
The poppies provide some color, though they exist more on a symbolic level then a sensory one. If you have ever seen a poppy in its process of growth, you have observed that just before blooming the bud hangs its head, heavy with the promise of blossom. In fact, the cocooned bud seems to droop in somnolence, as if enchanted. That poppies have been used as representations of death and (sometimes) rebirth is no surprise, with the Victorians absorbing Greco-Roman culture to such an extent that the flowers would often appear on tombstones.
Most of us are familiar with the hallucinogenic/narcotic properties of the poppy (opium is derived from the Chinese poppy). The ancient Greeks understood this, and so we see a link to Morpheus, the god of dreams. Morpheus lived in his own world- a world of sweet dreams, fantasy and complete non-adherence to traditional reality and messages wafting up through our dreams like a sweet fragrance - waiting to be recognized.
The feathers of white and black show the transformation of Medea’s psyche and how incredibly delicate and fragile she is.
While Robinson Jeffers attempted to modernize Medea’s language, we have tried to do it with costume. Medea and the nurse come from the far end of the world and their dress of browns and bronze captures them as the outsiders they are. The chorus, with their dresses of black and white (again duplicity), red make up and goth styling help to emphasize the grotesque, mysterious, and the (potentially) desolate. Creon’s clothing and makeup are sharp, form fitting and to the point, a visual representation of his personality. Jason looks different, feels different, as he constantly tries to fit into a world and reality that he believes is the best.
How must women find themselves in a world of men? When no one is innocent how shall people be judged? Who shall do the judging? Is what results justice? All of these questions are spoken to by Medea and I hope that are raised within you. While I do not desire you to necessarily feel terror, I do wish that the actors are able to shake you from your sleep, at least for a little while.
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