Robin Morgan:
The "otherizing" of women is the oldest oppression known to our species, and it's the model, the template, for all other oppressions.
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Robin Morgan: |
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE THEATRE UNBOUND DELIVERS TRANSFORMS GREEK MYTH (Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota) Theatre Unbound teams up with Green T Productions of New Richmond, Wisconsin for the final production of their 10th Anniversary Season: Medea: A Noh Cycle Based on the Greek Myth by Carol Sorgenfrei. Performances will be held at The Lowry Lab Theater, 350 St. Peter Street in downtown St. Paul, April 10-25, 2010 (see calendar below). "This will be a bold new step for Theatre Unbound," says Artistic Director Stacey Poirier. "We've experimented with movement in some of our other productions, but this brings it to an entirely new level. The spectacle alone will be exhilarating!" Playwright Sorgenfrei says, "The combination of a classical Greek myth with the formal structure of the Japanese Noh results in a new form born of the two." Like both classical Greek drama and traditional Noh, this new form is non-illusionistic, permeated with echoes of religious ritual. By telling the story in this way, Sorgenfrei suggests that the roles expected of Medea - faithful wife, nurturing mother - are as artificial as the theatrical style. "The play is deeply rooted in the feminism of the 1970s," says Green T Artistic Director Kathy Welch, who is directing Medea. "One theme Sorgenfrei's Medea expresses is that marriage and motherhood prevent a woman from living up to her full potential. She refers to her husband and children as parasites and indeed we discover at the end of the play that Jason and the children were really demons. I suspect many women secretly have these thoughts from time to time and I think this is a feeling worth exploring. The most important message I hope to deliver with this production from a feminist perspective is that women are all individuals and biology should not define a person." In Japan, a cycle of Noh plays have no thematic relation, but this play consists of five scenes - each corresponding to one of the traditional plays and they revolve around a unified theme forming a single entity. Welch will employ a variety of theatrical techniques from traditional Asian theater forms including the ultra-stylized manner (acting, dance, chant and music) of the Noh tradition, as well as some western techniques. Cast members include Heidi Berg (Pangea World Theater) and Ellen Apel (MN Jewish Theatre) as Medea and her Nurse, with Allen Malicsi (History Theatre) and Erika Danielle Crane (Mu Performing Arts) as Jason and his new bride Cruesa. Unbound company member Heather C. Brady along with Ashley Davis (Starting Gate Productions), Heather Quigley (Gallery Theatre Company), Natalie Remus (Four Humors Theater), Rita Tredal (Actors Theatre of MN), and Nicole Wilder (Bedlam Theatre) round out the ensemble. Carol Sorgenfrei, Professor of Theatre, University of California, Los Angeles, is an award-winning author of plays including Blood Wine, Blood Wedding. Her articles have been published in such major journals such as Asian Theater Journal, TDR, Theater Journal, Modern Drama, and Contemporary Theater Review. She is the editor of the Association for Asian Performance Newsletter. Medea: A Noh Cycle Based on the Greek Myth won Best Original Play at the American College Theater Festival in Washington DC, 1975. Theatre Unbound's 10th Anniversary Season is sponsored by Finnegans Irish Amber and Minnesota Women’s Press. PERFORMANCES Saturday, April 10 - 7:30 pm (Post-Show Reception*) GENERAL ADMISSION TICKET PRICES $12-$26 (sliding scale) RESERVATIONS 612-721-1186 or order online at www.theatreunbound.com COMING UP NEXT Theatre Unbound will announce its 11th season in June 2010. Visit www.theatreunbound.com for more information. ABOUT THEATRE UNBOUND Theatre Unbound produces high quality, visionary theatre created by women - powerful stories that represent women in active pursuit of their goals and desires; female perspectives on universal struggles and achievements. ABOUT GREEN T PRODUCTIONS Green T Productions seeks to produce plays that explore culture, history, and philosophy through theatre, dance and music. Visit www.greentproductions.org for more information. ###
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