A community dedicated to the stage and art, the UBC Theatre puts on numerous productions throughout the year. This season opened with The Bacchae 2.1, a re-imagining of Euripides’ original Greek tragedy. Vancouver’s circle of stage talents seemed to have gathered in Frederic Wood Theatre on the opening night on January 22nd. Bacchae 2.1 managed to attract play enthusiasts young and old from all over the city.
Written by Charles Mee, The Bacchae 2.1 is removed from ancient Greece and applies it to our time, giving the play a modern spin. The play centers on worshippers of the Greek demigod Dionysus. In particular, it tells the story of Agave, the leader of the women, and how she is enticed into murdering her own son, Pentheus.
Photo by Tim Matheson
The dressing scene is perhaps the most memorable of all for me. The audience sees Pentheus being dressed and camouflaged in female garments before sneaking into the mountains for information. The dressing (or rather undressing) is followed by a series of monologues by the women. The climax occurs shortly after this moment, when the progatonist’s identity is revealed, bringing the day of reckoning for Pentheus. This prelude to the murder scene muddles the definitions of gender and sex, and reshapes our social taboos on the subject. That said, I found that particular scene ineffective for audiences like myself who are not well educated in stage rhetoric. Without the program as a guide prior the start of the play, I would not have been able to grasp the message.
I must also single out the choreography. Incorporated with the costumes and lighting, the dance performances were wild and beautiful. It’s fair to say that I connected with the physical expression of the dancers more than the story itself. The dance and emotion thrummed with rhythm. The monologues by each of the women on stage were riveting and powerful. I must admit that it was at first a slightly uncomfortable experience due to the sensual and provocative content. However, coming from an atomized perspective in which I was suspicious of the play’s intentions, I was surprised that the discomfort went away quickly, and that I was able to focus on the play’s recurrent theme: the quest for liberation and dialogue.
Costume Design by Kiara Lawson. Full production portfolio here.
The social and political messages have tremendous implication for the construction of the play. This is why I love plays. Artistic expression probes politics of the human condition. More often than not, the plot lines of many plays vary broadly in details, but the embedded emotions flourishes across culture, race, general and historical time. As an audience member, and therefore part of this artistic experience, I too, engage myself in a unique dance of connection.
You can catch the Bacchae 2.1 at Frederick Wood Theatre until Feb. 7, so click here to book your ticket online now! If one of the performers catches your eye, you’re in luck – some of the Bacchae 2.1 performers have been spotlighted this week as Campus Cuties (rawr!)