ELECTRA
Sophocles, Aeschylus, Euripides, Hugo von Hofmannstahl
National Kaunas Drama Theatre, Lithuania
Premiere:
Duration:
September 12, 2020
105 minutes
CAST
Electra
Leda
Clytemnestra
Aegisthus
Agamemnon
Orestes
Pylad
Small Electra
Erithea
Hermione
Cilissa
Chrysothemis
Ariadni
Iphianassa
Greta Šepliakovaitė
Jūratė Onaitytė
Daiva Rudokaitė
Tomas Erbrėderis
Ričardas Vitkaitis
Povilas Jatkevičius
Deividas Breivė
Ieva Karoblytė /
Rasa Praspaliauskaitė
Kamilė Lebedytė
Jurgita Maskoliūnaitė
Saulė Sakalauskaitė
Ieva Stašelytė
Aistė Zabotkaitė
Roberta Sirgedaitė
CREATIVE TEAM
Director
Set design
Costume design
Choreography
Music
Lighting design
Text edition
Jaša Koceli
Darjan Mihajlović Cerar
Branka Pavlič
Tajda Podobnik
Miha Petric
David Andrej Francky
Daiva Čepauskaitė
ELECTRA
The performance Electra created by the Slovenian creative team and the company of actors of the National Kaunas Drama Theatre. When moulding the dramatic texture, the director and dramatist Jaša Koceli employed texts of ancient Greek authors (Sophocles, Euripides, Aeschylus) reflecting the myth of Electra. Director Jaša Koceli created an original interpretation of the myth, focusing it on a waiting-woman.
Electra, daughter of Agamemnon, the hero of Trojan War, and Queen Clytemnestra, is mourning her murdered father and waiting for the return of her brother with the intention to avenge for her father's death. Depression, abuse, lack of possibilities, childhood, and broken dreams are confined in her waiting.
Electra is not only a character of ancient Greek drama but also a symbol of a modern fighting woman. By employing many powerful archetypes, residing in Greek tragedies, the director creates a universal story of the destiny of a strong and revolutionary woman. Electra's destiny is a historic reality of women. Her fate multiplies in each new generation of women. Electra is an obedient woman, waiting sister, agreeable daughter, woman innocent in front of gods, and a lady without her lover. She is suffering in silence. She is crying. She is getting older. She is waiting. Her waiting is hopeless and filled with unrealised impulses and untapped potential. Her released energy can turn into violence and unpredictable passions; she can become a great avenger.
She is power, unifying people to make a difference. It is a story showing what can the process of unbearable waiting do to a person. It is a parallel history of humanity read through the eyes of women. It is a dialogue between us, the living, and the shadows of our ancestors.
Opening – 12th, 13th September and 8th October 2020
Duration – 1 hour 45 minutes
The Main Stage
The play is sponsored by The Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania