Electra USA

Electra USA PDF

Author: E. Teresa Choate

Publisher: Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press

Published: 2009

Total Pages: 284

ISBN-13: 083864211X

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Theatrical performance is the most ephemeral of arts. Once a production closes, the living work of art disappears. Fortunately, some productions leave behind enough evidence to reconstruct in words and pictures what a performance was like and to conjecture what the audience saw and heard. Between 1889 and 1995 in America, productions of Sophocles' Electra became the project of some of the most significant directors, actresses, and producers of their day. In reconstructing eleven major productions, this book seeks to accomplish two goals: first, to preserve, albeit in imperfect written form, the productions themselves; and, second, by tracing the history of Electra's production, to highlight some of the most pivotal figures in the development of American theater, including several key women often neglected by theater historians. Along the way, for those who celebrate Greek tragedy in production, this book will allow the reader to sit vicariously in the audience and enjoy eleven Electra productions on the American stage. E. Teresa Choate is an Associate Professor and Assistant Chair at the Department of Theatre in the School of Visual and Performing Arts at Kean University.

Elektra

Elektra PDF

Author: Jennifer Saint

Publisher: Flatiron Books

Published: 2022-05-03

Total Pages: 284

ISBN-13: 1250773601

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A spellbinding reimagining of the story of Elektra, one of Greek mythology’s most infamous heroines, from Jennifer Saint, the author of the beloved international bestseller, Ariadne. Three women, tangled in an ancient curse. When Clytemnestra marries Agamemnon, she ignores the insidious whispers about his family line, the House of Atreus. But when, on the eve of the Trojan War, Agamemnon betrays Clytemnestra in the most unimaginable way, she must confront the curse that has long ravaged their family. In Troy, Princess Cassandra has the gift of prophecy, but carries a curse of her own: no one will ever believe what she sees. When she is shown what will happen to her beloved city when Agamemnon and his army arrives, she is powerless to stop the tragedy from unfolding. Elektra, Clytemnestra and Agamemnon’s youngest daughter, wants only for her beloved father to return home from war. But can she escape her family’s bloody history, or is her destiny bound by violence, too?

Diversifying Greek Tragedy on the Contemporary US Stage

Diversifying Greek Tragedy on the Contemporary US Stage PDF

Author: Melinda Powers

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2018-07-26

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 0191083135

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In its long history of performance and reception, Greek drama has been interpreted and adapted in countless ways and forms in response to and as a reflection of the preoccupations and tensions of particular historical moments. This volume continues this tradition by investigating a cross-section of theatrical productions on the contemporary American stage that have reimagined Greek tragedy in order to address the political and social concerns of minority communities. Studying performance and its role in creating and reflecting social, cultural, and historical identity in contemporary America, it draws on cutting-edge research in the field to move discussion away from the interpretation of dramatic texts in isolation from their performance context, and towards an analysis of the dynamic experience of live theatre. The discussion focuses particularly on the ability of engaged performances to pose critical challenges to the long-standing stereotypes that have contributed to the misrepresentation and marginalization of minority cultures. However, in the process it also uncovers the ways in which such performances can inadvertently reinforce the very stereotypes they aim to execute, demonstrating that ancient drama can be a powerful and dangerous tool in the search for social justice.