Epidaurus – Alexa Joseph

We departed from our hotel on the beach of Corinth to go to The Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus. Along our journey we got dinner at a rest stop and had amazing chicken souvlaki before arriving at our destination. Once we got to Epidaurus the energy in the air was electric. It was built on the west side of the Cynortion Mountain, so we had to ascend to the theatre and to our seats. The history and ritual of the space made it feel intensely sacred. We sat and watched the sun go down while we waited for Iphigenia in Aulis by Euripides to begin.

This ancient greek text had very accessible subtitles, in both English and Greek, to make sure the audience could follow the story, as the space was massive and microphones were limited in use. Once the sun had gone down, the show began. A shirtless man wearing a giant blue deer mask descended from the darkness of the woods behind the stage. It was epic. He made his way around the space in silence, we heard only his breath. Then Iphigeneia also came through the same path of the woods carrying flowers in her arms and singing a beautiful hymn. They stared at each other. It was as if they were calling upon the gods to retell her story to us.

The greek chorus was made up of all women and was one of the best parts of the show for me. They embodied how an ensemble works simultaneously to serve the story. They were a huge and forceful presence. The show was very physically dynamic and getting to see women act out every aspect of it was powerful.

This story did well to represent what human sacrifice and war meant to this history. It challenged the idea of bravery and trust in the gods. Iphigenia was regarded as noble and brave by armies of men, her myth lives on and is passed down in greek culture through the theatre.

After the show ended we bussed back to our hotel and sat on the beach in the moonlight, soaking up all the history and eternal energy we shared that night. There was no better way to introduce greek theatre in the first few days of our trip!

-Alexa Joseph, 7/20

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