Secrecy and scandal: Greek tragedy comes to campus

As the curtains are drawn and silence falls across the room, the Chorus move in unison, as they foreshadow the travesties that are yet to occur…

A typical rehearsal for what is shaping up to be one of the biggest extravaganzas of the year: Exeter Classics Society’s annual play, Euripides’ Hippolytus.

With last year’s production of The Bacchae gaining the place of runner-up in the Student Guild’s “Event of the Year” award, the stakes are certainly high this year, but the rehearsals display incredible promise.

Joseph-Désiré Court, La mort d’Hipòlit, 1828.
Photo by Pilar Torres

Hippolytus follows the story of the eponymous hero, son of the legendary King Theseus of Athens, and the troubles that ensue when he refuses to worship the goddess of love, Aphrodite, in favour of Artemis, the goddess of chastity and hunting. Aphrodite has launched a rancorous plan to make Hippolytus’ stepmother, Phaedra, fall in love with him. As a sick insomniac Phaedra confesses her love for her stepson to a shocked audience of the Chorus and her nurse, she also declares that she will starve herself to keep her dignity. The nurse tells an enraged Hippolytus the truth, and although he swears an oath of secrecy, Phaedra nevertheless finds out… and hangs herself. When Theseus returns to find his wife dead, he assumes she was raped by Hippolytus and places the blame upon his son.

The question remains: will Hippolytus be able to protest his innocence, or will he be condemned to a terrible fate by his own father?

Using Ben Shaw’s translation, the Classics Society has created a unique viewing experience. Touches like the live cello music at the scene where Phaedra’s death is revealed add to the pathos and heighten an already emotionally charged production, full of powerful solos from the leads.

There is also some clever staging, with the use of a silhouette to portray Phaedra’s suicide in abstract, in line with the Greek tradition of not depicting death on stage.

Another feature which really stands out is the Chorus, who in some respects make this production. The use of only five members as opposed to the standard fifteen allows the choral odes to be performed, with actions complimenting the words of the story to very effective and moving dramatic effect.

One thing is for sure – this year’s spectacle is not to be missed. Hippolytus is being performed in the M&D Rooms in Devonshire House at 7PM on Wednesday 27th and Thursday 28th March.

Hershil Kotak

 

Home Gods at the RAMM

Wedged between suits of Samurai armour and Inuit all-weather gear, Home Gods isn’t exactly the Royal Albert Memorial Museum’s largest exhibit. What it is, however, is an intriguing glimpse at both spirituality and folklore, through the medium of reclaimed scrap material. a niche subject, perhaps, but one ultimately well worth taking the time to examine – whatever you’re level of expertise in Finnish folklore.

 

Photo credits to Niko Petterson

The work of Finnish artist Tatu Nikkannen, Home Gods has its roots in Finnish pre-christian folklore, and focuses upon interpreting both nature spirits, the Haltija, which were said to stand guard over all aspects of the natural world, and their domestic counterparts the Kojitumalat, who presided over the wellbeing of the home. These were represented in early Finnish belief by carvings and figurines which, on certain days, would be offered gifts in the hope of receiving prosperity in return. Intrinsic within the country’s spirituality for centuries, the legacy of the Kojitumalat still looms large thanks to work in preserving Finnish oral history over the last century.

 

Taking from a purely aesthetical perspective, the collection of carvings and statues on display in the RAMM’s simplistic glass cabinet is diverse. From the long-faced and leering ‘big head’ to the perpetual, glass-beaded stair of ‘cat lady,’ the figures are eclectically striking in their peculiar facial features and bold expressions. The eerie ‘iron man’ is a particular standout: swathed in black, with only the shadow of his jaw visible beneath his cowl, he stands in marked contrast to some of his more vibrant brethren.

 

Photo credits to Naystin on flickr

This exhibit, however, strives to be more than a mere collection of replica Kojitumalat – though even viewed as such, the figurines are engrossing enough to hold one’s interest. Nikkanen’s works possess their own unique stories and creation anecdotes through which – we are told – they transcend their origins as pieces of reclaimed scrap and become themselves manifestations of the Kojitumalat themselves: home gods for a new age. In this regard the exhibit is comprehensive, including even the tools used to craft the figurines, which were themselves suitably ordained for the task.

 

This premise is what makes Home Gods so interesting, rather than simple appearances: the  stories that accompany the figures are a captivatingly bizarre mix of varied origins and the trials of their individual creations. Many have their own anecdotes: the ‘red guy’, who was stained by burial in a hilltop rabbit warren; the ‘bear’s former existence as a kitchen worktop; ‘Big Head’s ties to a tree that still stands upon Dartmoor. It is through these tales the figurines are imbued, so we are told, with the spirit of the Kojitumalat. My only wish is that more space could have been lavished on the telling of these artistic tales, as not every figurine is gifted with so detailed a history as those recounted above.

 

Alongside the Finnish Kojitumalat, Home Gods also incorporates a number of corresponding objects from spirit-cultures from across the globe. While it is easy to appreciate the historic comparison being drawn by their inclusion, it nevertheless feels a little forced: where Nikkannen’s figurines are divergent but retain a central unity, the collection of Burmese spirit houses and Nicobar scare devils that accompany them feel somehow unnecessary. Certainly, they are interesting in their own right, but would perhaps be better served by being exhibited as part of the museum’s already comprehensive world cultures collection than tacked along here.

 

But this is something of a superfluous concern. Home Gods is an excellent little exhibition, and well worth a visit. It is, I feel, best viewed as part of the RAMM’s general collections: an intriguing aside to their already impressive exhibits, and a free one at that.

 

Alex Payne