Greek Theater at Segesta
We have been able to do so much this summer! One thing we both wanted to do was see a performance from the recently restored theater at Segesta, an hour and a half away from here by convertible, on a warm summer night. And we did just that on Friday. Of course, the full moon made it magical and the almost empty highway and perfect temperatures made it an experience we will want to repeat. They also have two dawn musical programs (5 AM) left and we will want to do one of those one of these days.
Leaving our house at 5 PM for the 7:30 PM show, we got there in time to pick up sandwiches, board a comfortable bus, be driven up the hill, and get good seats for the performance. The show was done and we were transported back down and arrived on the main highway in our car by 9:30 PM, when most shows in Sicily start. So this is one of those realistic performances that is designed for tourist comfort. But I just saw in the paper that there had been severe problems on Thursday because the inefficient bus system had taken 4 hours to bus 2,000 spectators up the hill to hear a popular comedian. If there were many more than 500 at our performance, I would have been very surprised, so the efficiency here probably depends on how many people attend a particular program.
We saw Electra, the Greek play that revolved again around that fun family that loved to hate and for whom revenge was more than sweet, it was a duty. Agamemnon and Clytemnestra are the couple whose children are Electra, Orestes, and Iphigenia (I just cant imagine them as children). Their family life consists of a series of murders, human sacrifice, remarriage, huge battles guided by the intervention by the gods, and of course, revenge. Having seen the Eumenides at Siracusa last year, following the furies wrath over Orestes revenge killing of his mother, and having read Iphigenia , whose parents decide to sacrifice her, because Jess produced it at school this year, this gang gets my nod for the price for best dysfunctional family of the last two millennia.
Its fun to follow along the Italian text, except it is not always so easy, as they never sell the exact text, but one that generally follows what is going on. Add to that the directors choice of who gets to give the lines when the character in the text is chorus (you know, the Greek chorus that is famous for making asides and commenting on the situation) and you have to think about who is saying what a lot. The acting was excellent, and so helped the meaning along.
But the play was definitely surpassed by the setting. The theater is located on a hillside where you cannot help but look out over the hillside and dream that you are there in Greek times, especially at sunset. The existence of a superhighway bridge in the middle of the scene is not really that bad, as its graceful curve adds to the beauty of the scene. We started the play in daylight and ended in darkness. The costumes were gorgeous, the sound perfect, the evening magical.
Leaving our house at 5 PM for the 7:30 PM show, we got there in time to pick up sandwiches, board a comfortable bus, be driven up the hill, and get good seats for the performance. The show was done and we were transported back down and arrived on the main highway in our car by 9:30 PM, when most shows in Sicily start. So this is one of those realistic performances that is designed for tourist comfort. But I just saw in the paper that there had been severe problems on Thursday because the inefficient bus system had taken 4 hours to bus 2,000 spectators up the hill to hear a popular comedian. If there were many more than 500 at our performance, I would have been very surprised, so the efficiency here probably depends on how many people attend a particular program.
We saw Electra, the Greek play that revolved again around that fun family that loved to hate and for whom revenge was more than sweet, it was a duty. Agamemnon and Clytemnestra are the couple whose children are Electra, Orestes, and Iphigenia (I just cant imagine them as children). Their family life consists of a series of murders, human sacrifice, remarriage, huge battles guided by the intervention by the gods, and of course, revenge. Having seen the Eumenides at Siracusa last year, following the furies wrath over Orestes revenge killing of his mother, and having read Iphigenia , whose parents decide to sacrifice her, because Jess produced it at school this year, this gang gets my nod for the price for best dysfunctional family of the last two millennia.
Its fun to follow along the Italian text, except it is not always so easy, as they never sell the exact text, but one that generally follows what is going on. Add to that the directors choice of who gets to give the lines when the character in the text is chorus (you know, the Greek chorus that is famous for making asides and commenting on the situation) and you have to think about who is saying what a lot. The acting was excellent, and so helped the meaning along.
But the play was definitely surpassed by the setting. The theater is located on a hillside where you cannot help but look out over the hillside and dream that you are there in Greek times, especially at sunset. The existence of a superhighway bridge in the middle of the scene is not really that bad, as its graceful curve adds to the beauty of the scene. We started the play in daylight and ended in darkness. The costumes were gorgeous, the sound perfect, the evening magical.
posted by Sicilian Mama at 7:47 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home