Mourning. Weeping, Fear. Loss of hope. These are the elements that make up the stories of the Women of Troy.
In February, the TTU Women’s Studies Program, alongside the Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance, had a panel discussion with community and university leaders entitled, “Rape Culture at Texas Tech University,” to help promote One Billion Rising, a day of action worldwide by V-day, the global activist movement to end violence against women and girls. “The Women of Troy” is a reminder that even though women were treated cruelly after the Trojan War, that similar acts of sexual assault and degrading women are still alive and well today.
Courtesy of Texas Tech University Department of Theatre and Dance.
Ben Slate, the TTU “The Women of Troy” director, described the time period for the play to showcase that rape was a sign of male domination, a sexual manifestation of aggression used to control and intimidate, and demean women through systematic misogyny.
Evangeline Jimenez, dramaturg for “The Women of Troy,” said the original author, Euripides, was thought to have written this play set in the aftermath of the Trojan War as a social commentary to what happened in Melos in 416 B.C.E.
Jimenez said the point of the play is to comment on the nature of war, such as sex trafficking and sexual assault. These elements of the play are ordinarily overlooked or minimized in thought and representation. When I walked into the theatre and signed in to see the play, the woman holding the clipboard told me not to enjoy the play, but to experience it. One of the ushers gave a verbal warning about the amount of nudity, raping, and cruelty to women that is involved in the play.
“If you’re offended by any of these things then you should probably leave,” she said.
This was the first time I had ever seen the Mainstage this full on a sneak peek night. I was instantly excited. The opening scene was awesome. It was everything I expected. Women were pushing Greek soldiers off of their frail bodies and fighting for their lives. The whole time there is a form of choreography going on. There’s action, and then the entire cast freezes like you’re looking at a picture from a history book. Following the opening scene what happened next was heart wrenching.
I could tell that the woman who played this quick role was Madison Weinhoffer — and she did an amazing job. Every time I watch a play with her in it, I remember how talented she truly is. There’s an in-depth rape scene of an officer chasing the poor woman around the entire stage. He beats her, trips her, and slaps her, all so he can have sex with her. He rips her dress and she can barely get up after he rapes her. It was a very moving scene, and that’s what I expected from the rest of the play. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.
I’ll be honest, Weinhoffer was the best part of the entire play. Weinhoffer plays Cassandra later on in the play. Cassandra is freaking crazy. She seems possessed. Her father has been killed in the war and so have her brothers and sisters. All she has left is her mother, Hecuba, played by Kristen Rogers. I expected so much more from Hecuba. It was obvious she was suffering and in so much pain. I would never want to be in her shoes, or any of the Trojan women for that matter, but the way she went about her character was almost too much for me. I felt like she was trying too hard for me to feel something. I expected to be upset and moved by this play, but I just felt like the same things were being repeated over and over again.
Maybe it was the language of the play. It’s definitely not put in modern-day terminology. The female chorus, played by Franchesca Breig, Jordan Brown, Jessica Garcia, Leah Lambert, Nikole Martine, and Rebecca Wright, that surrounds Hecuba was an interesting dynamic. They expressed the voices of the gods and spoke their minds on the matter of the Greek War. I also liked the lighting and special effects in this play. It added a lot of effect, especially when Poseidon speaks and at the very end of the play.
I’m glad I saw the play in some ways. It’s a reminder that rape and sexual assault are still as prevalent as they were back in the day. I would have been okay with just seeing the first half. I understand why the play went on as long as it did, but I just felt like it was never going to end. There is some comic relief in the second half, which was pleasant. Menelaus, played by Randall Rapstine, has come to Troy to find Helen, played by Amanda Varcelotti. Helen was the woman who started the war in the first place. It’s a terrible mess. What I do find interesting is Helen uses her sexuality to try to get what she wants.
It’s enlightening if you don’t know the story of “The Women of Troy,” and it does spread the word that rape and sexual assault is not OK in any time period. Tickets for ”The Women of Troy” are $18 for individuals and $5 for students with a valid student ID. A limited number of free student rush tickets are available for Texas Tech students. “The Women of Troy” runs from March 6 through 8 at 8 p.m. and March 9 at 2 p.m. For more information, call the Maedgen Theatre box office at (806) 742-3603.
Cast
Hecuba – Kristen Rogers
Andromach/Athene – Amber Renee-Ward Patrick
Cassandra – Madison Weinhoffer
Helen – Amanda Varcelotti
Talthybius – Randy Woolley
Menelaus – Randall Rapstine
Poseidon/Greek Solider – Dean Hollis
Astyanax – Gavin Rogers
Female Chorus – Franchesca Breig, Jordan Brown, Jessica Garcia, Leah Lambert, Nikole Martine, and Rebecca Wright
Greek Soldiers – Jose Barraza, Dakota Duclo, Tom Laney, Gabriel Vanover, and Kyle Williams
Captive Male Chorus – Connor Myers, Zachary Eaton, and Kelvin Micheal Rhodes
Production Staff
Stage Manager – Valerie D. Slate
Assistant Stage Manager – Dean Mitchell
Assistant Director/Dramaturg – Evangeline Jimenez
Fight Director – Tiza Garland
Choreographer – Courtney Brown
Master Electrician – Emmett Buhmann
Oracle Lyrics – Jared Strange
Sound Running Crew – Kenna Dalley
Lights Running Crew – Kyvon Raymond
Set Running Crew – Keegan Breeden, Kailey Stockton, and Alex Vletas
Costume Running Crew – Victoria Lawson, Jesus Ramirez, and Jesus Solis III
Program Design – Aaron Wood
Poster/Program Cover Design – KVN Studio
House Supervisor – Ashley Meyer
Assistant House Supervisor – Clay Martin, DeRon Williams, and Karen Wurl
House Manager – Calli Lynch
Ushers – Maria Becerra, Sierra Burt, Anthony Burto, Nicholas Hernandez, Natalie Mayo, Natascha Muizers, Joshua Servantez, and Jordan Shaw
About Lauren Estlinbaum
