In a modern day production of Lysistrata, a director’s role would involve the overseeing of the whole play making course and ensuring that all the cast members realize the vision of the production. This role covers all the steps of production from the interpretation of the script to the final performance. This means that the director has a say over a range of disciplines and has to have artistic vision. Lysistrata was produced in 411 B.C., at a time when Athens and Sparta had just concluded a two-decade long war and the general population was in despair. Comedies such as these were used then to communicate instructions to the people (mbc.edu). This essay will focus on the scene where Lysistrata has gathered all the women to convinces the to withhold sex from their husbands until they sign a peace treaty. To realize the vision of the play, the script, set-up, costumes, stagecraft, sound design, and acting have to communicate a unified message with which the audience will relate. The script will be tailored to ensure that the audience can understand the play as it proceeds. This is in terms of the language and terms used. Though the language will not be modern, it will be English that can be understood by the audience. This will be English of antique England as it will give the play a feeling of ancient times. The scriptwriter will carry out research on the level of understanding the local people will have of ancient English so as to ascertain that the script matches this level. Although many plays of that era were sung and accompanied by dance, this play will be acted out with spoken word rather than songs. This is because speaking will ensure the audience hears the conversations as they go on and that they understand. This is ... ... middle of paper ... ...number of people cast will also change. Additionally, the actors will speak and not sing the words. This is to ensure a flow of dialogue in a plausible manner that people today would believe. The actors will be instructed to emulate the words and body language typical of Greeks from the set era. The stage will be set to ascertain visibility to every member of the audience, with Lysistrata standing on a raised platform while addressing the women. All these aspects combined will ensure everyone understands and enjoys the play. Works Cited Mary Baldwin College. Lysistrata (Aristophanes, 411 BCE). Web. 6 February 2014 http://www.mbc.edu/faculty/vfrancisco/TheaEurope/lysistrata.htm (2014). Perseus Digital Library. Aristophanes’ Lysistrata. Jack Lindsey, Ed. Web. 6 February 2014 from www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc+Perseus:abo:tlg,0019,007:168&lang+original
shall firstly do a summery of the play and give a basic image of what
Theatrical performance is vital not only to the presentation of Hamlet and Othello, but it is vital to each of the play's respective stories. Several key characters control, manipulate, or script a theatrical performance of their own. Through subtle suggestion and explicit or implicit storytelling, Shakespeare's use of theatrical performance within his own plays underscores the subversive power of the theater.
Euripides manipulates the characters, through contrast, to explore or challenge Greek society’s gender roles of female and male behavior through the stereotypes that are established within his plays. In the play Medea, we observe the protagonist challenging the traditional patriarchal system of Greek society and empowering herself throughout the play using the stereotype of feminine behavior in order to manipulate the males (Barlow 163) We observe this through her manipulation of King Creon. The king states, “I order you to go from this land”[;] she then is able to manipulate the king, successfully, for another day (272). The empowerment through this exchange is viewed when the king states, “[W]hy are you applying force, refusing to release my hand?” (339) This line is the first sign of Medea taking control of her destiny, no longer allowing the males to determine it for her. As Barlow points out, “Medea’s ability to “[dissociate] herself not just with women’s stereotypes as they are commonly accepted by women as well as men, but more impor...
In the introduction of the scene, the women are gathering for a meeting which Lysistrata request for and she begins to reveal her plan, as women, we can work together to end the war. At the start, Kalonkie, a friend of Lysistrata initiated “How can women do a thing so austere, so political?”(10), immediately women are questioning what qualification women can do to end a war the only skill comprehend is to be a lovely housewife. The notion of women minds dose not expands and believes that they are capable of doing things beyond. As well in this quote, there is emphasize on the word “political” Kalonkie is demonstrates politics is a difficult aspect to understand and is mainly a man’s job. The questions of women do not have the qualify knowledge of fixing such a complex situation. However, once Lysistrata deliberates her plan on a sex strike unhesitatingly Kalonkie speaks “no! I’d walk through fire for you- you know I would!”(10), this immediate response shows women are not entirely supportive of Lysistrata’s plan, and women will exclusive will do anything else besides supporting the sex strike. As well, a scene in the Akropolis women is infidelity escaping so they can go have sexually contact with their husbands. Lysistrata response on this behave was not positive aspect about women “No wonder poets write tragedies about us.” (12), Lysistrata the protagonist demonstrates responses are actually the behavior of what men consider of women. Women are considered only for their sexual desire, to be pretty and sit all day, while allowing the men achieve all the action and heroic stuff. These impressions of hesitance of women are shown throughout in deliberation and see nothing beyond of
Lysistrata, on the contrary shows women acting bravely and even aggressively against men who seem resolved on ruining the city- state by prolonging a pointless and excessively expending reserves stored in the Acropolis. The men being away at war would come home when they could, sexually relieve them selves and then leave again to precede a meaningless war. The women challenge the masculine role model to preserve traditional way of life in the community. When the women become challenged themselves they take on the masculine characteristics and defeat the men physically, mentally but primarily strategically. Proving that neither side benefits from it, just that one side loses more than the other. It gives the impression that the women are heroes and the men are ignorant, which contradicts what Euripides said but is chiefly written to entertain.
Recently, I had the pleasure of seeing the fall production of Argonautika at the Westmont High School Theater directed by Jeff Bengford and written by Mary Zimmerman. Mary Zimmerman’s adaptation of Argonautika carefully selects which pieces of a Greek story to emphasize, where to begin and end the story, and which characters to feature. Argonautika is very much an ensemble piece, with every actor standing out in multiple roles. Her version focuses on Jason and Medea and begins with an invocation by the chorus that summarizes the story of Helle and Phrixus. The last showing on November 21st of Argonautika by the Westmont High School Performing Arts Department, was exciting beginning to end. Bengford’s production Argonautika greatly captures the intentions of Mary Zimmerman’s playwright into an exciting play for the audience.
The production of the work Lysistrata would not be in vane. Aristophanes had the right attitude when writing such a work. After reviewing the script I feel it would be to the benefit of our society if we produce this play to the great city of Athens. It will provide entertainment, a gathering for all citizens, and an insight on what we should consider for ourselves. A sense of the reality of war and its fundamentals will set in most likely after viewing the production. There are no winners in a war, only those who are lost, or have lost various things. This could start a trend of peace throughout the area of Greece, and nothing but good can come of that. No edits, no rewording, just the work as it was intended would be mostly beneficial to the Athenian community. Consider the alternatives.
...tics. Her function in society as a heroine is portrayed throughout the play. However, the reader must consider that the play is representative of a fictitious comedy and offered no relief from war "the war continued for seven more exhausting years, until Athens's last fleet was defeated" (Page 467, Paragraph 2). Furthermore, Lysistrata is the "mastermind" of the "sex strike;" however, she does not take part in it other than directing orders. Also, due to her apparent lack of sexual desire, Lysistrata is given more respect by the men of Athens. The play's actions, characters and Lysistrata's actions all indicate her demonstration of a bold leader, unrepresentative of a traditional Athenian woman.
Aristophanes play Lysistrata takes place during the Peloponnesian War and the women of Greece are tired of their men being at war. Greek women want to preserve the traditional way of life in their community. With this in mind, Lysistrata calls all the women of Greece together and devises a plan. She argues that if the women all participate in two activities, their men will end the war. Her proposals are that the women hold a sexual strike against the men.
“Lysistrata” is a tale which is centered around an Athenian woman named Lysistrata and her comrades who have taken control of the Acropolis in Athens. Lysistrata explains to the old men how the women have seized the Acropolis to keep men from using the money to make war and to keep dishonest officials from stealing the money. The opening scene of “Lysistrata” enacts the stereotypical and traditional characterization of women in Greece and also distances Lysistrata from this overused expression, housewife character. The audience is met with a woman, Lysistrata, who is furious with the other women from her country because they have not come to discuss war with her. The basic premise of the play is, Lysistrata coming up with a plan to put an end to the Peloponnesian War which is currently being fought by the men. After rounding up the women, she encourages them to withhold sex until the men agree to stop fighting. The women are difficult to convince, although eventually they agree to the plan. Lysistrata also tells the women if they are beaten, they may give in, since sex which results from violence will not please the men. Finally, all the women join Lysistrata in taking an oath to withhold sex from their mates. As a result of the women refraining from pleasing their husbands until they stop fighting the war, the play revolves around a battle of the sexes. The battle between the women and men is the literal conflict of the play. The war being fought between the men is a figurative used to lure the reader to the actual conflict of the play which is the battle between men and women.
The play Lysistrata takes on a lot of gender roles, and the views of woman and men in the play are of a stereotypical point of view. There is a lot of gender power and a reversal of traditional gender roles by weakening the theory that men hold real power in society. The woman mostly Lysistrata show through actions, that they are more effective at provoking change.
The play up for discussion is the Kingsborough’s Community College spring production of Two Gentlemen of Verona The Musical. This is a musical adaptation of the original Shakespearean play The Two Gentlemen of Verona. In this essay the Kingsborough’s Community College spring production of Two Gentlemen of Verona The Musical, the original Shakespearean play and five former plays adaptations, themes, and characters will be evaluated. The first is Euripides 431 B.C. E. play Medea, the second is the 148 A.D. Latin play, The Menaechmi by Plautus, the third is the 1509 play Everyman by an anonymous playwright during the Tudor period, the fourth is the 1671 three-act comedy play The Impostures of Scapin by French playwright Moliere and the fifth is the 1604 Dr. Faustus by Christopher Marlowe. Even though there have been modern adaptations of these plays the theme and the recurring motif remains the same and it still probes into the life of humans.
... convey deeper themes of life and death, the struggles between power and class structure and also the societal differences between men and women. Aristophanes uses humor to hook his audience into his play, and then undermines the surface humor with much bigger thematic issues. If this play had simply been about women withholding sex for other reasons such as wanting more money for shopping or other frivolous ideas it would not then be considered a satiric comedy. Satire requires more than physical humor. An issue must be raised such as the life and death theme that is seen in the war in Lysistrata, and a solution must then be made. Aristophanes created the women in the beginning to be bickering, unintelligent, and self-centered people. But in the end it was their idea and compromise that ended the war.
Greek and Elizabethan theatre, while similar in some respects, had a few large differences. The Greeks believed in a certain unity of theme, which was prevalent throughout the production. Greek plays were often drawn from myth or of historical significance, so it seems that only ki...
The medieval age also saw some of the greatest contributions to theater. The biggest influence on later theater was the changing of the language used in the plays from Latin to the vernacular. This was crucial in spreading drama as it allowed the lower classes to understand the performances and contributed to the expansion of theater across Europe in the R...