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The tragedy of war: "The Trojan Women" takes the BSC stage this month
The tragedy of war: "The Trojan Women" takes the BSC stage this month
For Immediate Release
Apr. 10, 2017
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.--Today, the word “tragedy” calls to mind images of Syrian refugee camps and continued civil war. Birmingham-Southern College’s fresh, post-modern production of the Greek classic The Trojan Women plays on that association, capturing the suffering of the women of Troy in post-war devastation.
Performances will run in the College Theatre/Mainstage from Thursday, April 27 through Sunday, April 30; special events include a talk from the director on April 25 and an opening night dinner with a discussion by a BSC classics professor.
The show is based on a recent translation of Euripides’ tragedy by George Theodoridis and includes an original musical score performed live with percussion and electric guitar. The story is based on semi-historical events after an Athenian army ransacked the mainland rival city of Troy in about 1270 BCE; all of the women are refugees, and the men are dead.
“The play examines loss and the destruction of war from the perspective of the women who must survive deeply flawed leadership,” said BSC Professor of Theatre Dr. Alan Litsey, who is co-directing the production along with Adjunct Professor of Theatre Rebecca Kornegay Yeager (a 2006 BSC graduate) and Megan Pecot, a junior theatre major at BSC. “The timeliness of the play so resonates with our theatre company due to the recent tragic events in Syria and the struggles of so many women and men there. This is reflected in the deep pain experienced by the women of Troy.”
Along with the interpretation, the play’s scenic design will be unique--a “stadium-style” formation with the audience seated on both sides of the stage facing each other--to create an immersive environment to engage the audience.
“The costumes and scenic and prop designs are informed by color and texture from ancient Homeric Greece as well as post-modern Syria,” said Litsey. “The space itself, as designed for our main stage, is vast. In fact, we’ve never created a space of such breadth.”
Litsey and company members will present a pre-opening talk and scene preview, “The Trojan Women: Surviving Flawed Leadership,” on Tuesday, April 25, at 11 a.m. in the College Theatre/Mainstage. The hour-long talk, part of BSC's series of Provost's Forums, is free and open to the public.
In addition, the theatre program will host an opening night dinner on Thursday, April 27 at 5:30 p.m. in the Executive Dining Room on the third floor of the Norton Campus Center, featuring BSC Visiting Instructor of Classics Dr. George Hendren. His topic will be “Such is the Handiwork of Athena: History and Despair in Euripides’ Trojan Women.” Dinner tickets are $20 with limited seating on a first-reserved and first-served basis, and the event is open to the public.
The Trojan Women will be presented at 7:30 p.m. April 27-29 and April 30 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for students, and can be purchased at the College Theatre Box Office, by phone at (205) 226-4780, or via the link below.