April 1-3: Arcadia University Theater Presents: Euripides The Bakkhai
Arcadia University Theater Arts announces full casting and production details for Euripides The Bakkhai a new version by Anne Carson. Directed by Theater Arts guest teaching artist Katherine Wilkinson, The Bakkhai will play Arcadia’s Little Theater April 1-3, 2022.
The Bakkhai (Euripides’ most subversive play) tells the story of a man who cannot admit he would rather live in the skin of a woman, and a god who seems to combine all sexualities into a single ruinous demand for adoration. Euripides was a playwright of the fifth century BC who reinvented Greek tragedy, setting it on a path that leads straight to reality TV. His plays broke all the rules, upended convention and outraged conservative critics.
“In a 21st century world of charismatic leaders, whether of nations or corporations or religious institutions, The Bakkhai investigates who we should follow up to the mountain of truth and wisdom,” says director Wilkinson. “Can we trust the most practical person in the room? The most audacious? The most provocative? Or the most conservative? Who is worthy of our trust? A question that, especially since the start of the pandemic, we have all been forced to ask ourselves.”
Wilkinson continues, “while The Bakkhai is a play from antiquity, Anne Carson’s contemporary and fast-paced translation brings Euripides questions of leadership, gender, and faith to the center of our modern world. With the addition of new music, movement, and design, the play moves between a rock concert, a Hillsong church ceremony, and a prophetic telling of a cursed family prophecy.”
Staged in Spruance Fine Arts Center’s Little Theater, Wilkinson is joined by a creative team that includes scenic designer Rob Napoli, costume designer Mary Folino, lighting designer Joshua Schulman, sound designer Damien Figueras and fight choreographer Oliver Donahue.
ABOUT THE PRODUCTION
The Bakkhai
By Euripides
With a new translation by Anne Carson
April 1 @ 8 pm
April 2 @ 2 pm and 8 pm
April 3 @ 2 pm
The Little Theater
Dionysos is the god of intoxication. Once you fall under his influence, there is no telling where you will end up.
THE CAST
- Dave Allison (‘23)
- Aidan Corrie (‘25)
- Molly Diane (‘23)
- Siobhan Ehresmann (‘23)
- Sophia Flint (‘23)
- Raven Jane (‘23)
- Casey Lynch (‘22)
- Erin Quinn (‘23)
- Amanda Sturman (‘22)
- Peytann Tamasi (‘24)
- Courtney Thoroughgood (‘22)
- Mersha Wambua (‘23)
- Riley Sheetz (‘25) & Mia Christensen (‘25), Production Stage Managers
TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets priced between $5-$15 can be purchased in advance at arcadiautheater.ticketleap.com. All performances include a “Pay What You Want” ticket option.
