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The Oresteian Trilogy
September 2023: Literary Fiction
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The Oresteian Trilogy by Aeschylus - 4 stars (Subdue)
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I so love the Greek plays! you are right that they are quite timeless. I actually believe that all plays are better understood if heard/read or of course seen. Even if modernized productions.While at Barnard, I joined with some classics majors from Barnard and Columbia Colleges and we formed the Barnard Columbia Greek Drama Group to put the classic play on - in ancient greek. I was the theater person, brought in to be the stage manager and convince the Barnard theater department head that we were serious and let us use Barnard's jewel box of a theater in Milbank Hall. Eumenides was one of the plays I stage managed, and we really had figured it out with that one, combining music, dance movements for the chorus, for example. I'm very proud that nearly 50 years later, the group I helped form is still going strong and putting on these classics in their original language.
Very cool, Theresa! I love the old Greeks. As a woman, though, I am very glad that I didn't live back then.
The Oresteian Trilogy contains three works by Aeschylus: Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, and Eumenides. My audio version, which is read by a full cast, also includes an excerpt from Proteus in The Odyssey that refers to Agamemnon’s brother Menelaus. It was performed in 458 BCE and is the only Greek drama that survives in its entirety. It is a story of vengeance and justice. In the first part, when Agamemnon returns from Troy, his wife Clytemnestra takes revenge on him for his role in the sacrifice of their daughter Iphegenia. In The Libation Bearers, Orestes and Electra take revenge on their mother Clytemnestra. In Eumenides, Orestes goes on trial for killing Clytemnestra, with Athena as judge, the Furies as prosecutors, and Apollo speaking for the defense. It reflects the changes in Greek society at the time, told as a clash between the old gods and the new order. This Greek tragedy is written in an eloquent manner. It is surprisingly modern in its translation by Ian Johnston and adaptation by Yuri Rasovsky. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in the classics. I think audio is a wonderful way to gain an appreciation for how it may have been performed.