Cast members perform “The?Trojan Women.”
Thursday was the opening night for the theater department’s “The Trojan Women,” which will continue until the last showing Sunday evening.
The play follows the widows of Troy 10 days after the Trojan horse incident. Hecuba, queen of Troy, and the other women are to be taken to Odysseus to become slaves.
Due to the many fighting scenes choreographed by Tori Keeling, senior and assistant director from Dallas, the cast had to go through some physical training.
“We had to do the dance of death,” said Katherine Summerfield, sophomore from Louisville, Ky. “It’s a Suzuki style exercise that is a 30-minute workout that literally works out everything.”
Matthew Crider, assistant professor of theater, said the play is a presentational style show that is different from what the audience is used to and is quick and emotionally charged.
Summerfield, who plays Hecuba in the cast, was involved in another production of the play when she was in high school as the assistant stage manager.
“There are multiple translations for this show, so I was nowhere near ready for this part,” Summerfield said. “I didn’t know how to portray this role without making Hecuba look like she’s crying all the time or like she’s hysterical, because she was the queen.”
Summerfield said after this exercise the cast would do a viewpoint exercise where they would walk on a grid on the floor and create pictures of each other without speaking, thus creating a sort of group mind.
Other preparations for the show included the theater department’s open auditions, held once a semester.
For the “Trojan Women” show, students had to prepare a Greek monologue and a comedic monologue for their auditions.
Story by Brandon Cash, Staff writer