Well that was brutal. I was familiar with this play going in - about the vengeance Medea takes on her husband Jason (of the Argonauts) by plotting to murder their children. But this production took on a new relevance in the 2016 presidential campaign and the sickening, maddening "war on women". Catharsis barely begins to describe it.
Judging the production on its own merits, it was well worth watching, visceral and contemporary. Medea and her chorus of well-off wives look like they came from a sitcom that went careening off the rails into murderville. Jason has left Medea behind for a more politically advantageous marriage; her peers in the chorus reflect the modern equivalent of wives who know too well how, having poured themselves into their husbands and their husnbads' fortunes, would be crushed by losing that relationship. These actresses would have fit in beautifully to Breaking Bad, which for all its quality was painfully short of good writing for its female characters. That show sorely needed a heavy dose of Medea. Another good fit is of course House of Cards, which I have to admit I find more difficult to watch than Greek tragedy. Medea in the end is far more sympathetic than Frank and Claire, because the exploration of her psyche and the conflict between strength and empathy is so deep and believably human.
Much like those dramas, this play is fascinating and horrifying, as we spend the majority listening to terrible crimes planned and agonized over before the audience's eyes. The modern staging makes it feel like a movie dramatizing a real murder. The Greek Chorus, however, elevates the art form by displaying so many facets of Medea's mind and internal struggle in every varied or unified reaction.
It is with the Chorus of modern women that the current events and political relevance of the play is most profound. A moment I will long remember will be the Chorus, talking about how many women have had to endure so much they can understand how Medea has been moved to grief, anger and violence. They came together in steady steps, and repeated in rising voices,
We will tell of men's outrageousness.
We will tell of men's outrageousness.
We will tell of men's outrageousness.
As the volume rose, the voices went from grieving, to strong, to righteous and defiant, all in synch for a few long seconds - then became desperate, wild, out of control, until most women stopped in breathless horror, exhaustion, or silent determination. "Women" as a group might have a sliver of insight into each other's shared experience, but are truthfully far less unified than many women might wish to believe. And what to do when Medea lamented the confusion of the world, convinced and determined to cause harm to herself and others - the Chorus, like the audience, watched and wondered.