From ejt1@columbia.edu Sat Mar 23 21:06:38 2002
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Date: Sun, 24 Mar 2002 00:05:38 -0500 (EST)
From: Elias J Theodoracopoulos <ejt1@columbia.edu>
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To: Classics <classics@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: Helen
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An incoherent, trendy, theatrically ill-performed diatribe on war (as seen
on TV), empowerment of women (poor dears, the things that men do to them),
the gods ("like flies to wanton boys", etc.), and beauty and its
discontents. Never touched on the nature of Helen as a hypostasis for
Aphrodite. Brought in a sassy, brassy black Athena as a comic figure
(speaking of stereotypes). Never dealt with desire and possession. Some
fine touches apparent rari nantes in gurgite vasto.
Don't go.

EJTh

On Sat, 23 Mar 2002, Diana Wright wrote:

> http://www.publictheater.org/plaidesignd/public_index.html
>
> We went down to the Public Theater this afternoon & saw an intelligent, stylish play, Helen, that takes off from Euripides.  It begins as a comedy & becomes progressively more wrenching.  Helen has spent the 17 years in an Egyptian hotel, channel-surfing.  There is a maid who tells her stories -- & who does a marvellous blending of Helen-in-Egypt with Sleeping Beauty.  Io, with some cow appurtenances, makes an appearance.  Athena drops in & discusses how tiresome the war was.  Menelaus finally arrived, shell-shocked.  He is given the lines about all this suffering for a phantom & Troy is seen as Gallipoli.  The language is mostly terrific, & saturated in Homer & Aeschylus.  Much of the play has to do with the Protean quality of time & stories.  Helen is quite beautiful.>
> Helen = Donna Murphy
> Maid - Marian Seldes
> Io = Johanna Day
> Athena = Phylicia Rashad [black Athena? -- I've seen a black Athena before, in Peter Sellars' Ajax, though there s/he was bald & in drag].
> Menelaus = Denis O'Hare
>
> Tickets are $45, but 10 tickets for $15 go on sale half an hour before the performance & we were lucky.  It will be there for a month.
>
> Go.
>
> DW
>

.