Athena
Prologue: The entire cast with music and movement.
"The Storm" (Act 1, Scene 1; pages 4 - 8)
Characters: Jason, Hera, Athena, understudies for Hera and Athena will wave long strips of chiffon to simulate waves of a river.
Cast: Royer Perez, Amber Florin, Melissa Navarro, Amanda Mendez, Shania Vista
Synopsis: Hera in disguise as an old woman, tricks Jason into carrying her across the river to test him for his righteousness. He passes the test. Hera then reveals her true identity as a goddess and promises him that she will always love him. Athena jabs one of Jason's sandals with her spear, causing him to walk about with only one sandal, thereby fulfilling an important prophesy - that King Pelias will be undone by a man with one sandal. Athena tells Jason she, his reason, will always be his guide.
Sound Effects: Music (suggestive of a storm), Thunder
Props: Umbrella, raincoat, spear, a sandal
“Pelias Was Old” (Act 1, Scene 2; pages 9 - 19)
Characters: Jason, Pelias, Asterion, Cepheus, Phrixus, Helle, evil step-mother, duped King-father, the Golden Ram, Aeetes
Character descriptions: Cepheus, Asterion: Two flunkies of King Pelias; they are kiss-ups,
cynical. King Pelias: cheated his brother (Jason’s father) out of the
kingship; he is crafty, manipulative.
Cast: Royer Perez, Anton Burman, Norman Thatch, Franklin Franco, Elizabeth DiMuro, Montserrat Robles, Chynna Tumalad, Cheyenne Dioh, Akili Nkosi
Jason visits his evil uncle, the king, for his birthday.
Pelias cheated Aeson, his brother and Jason's father, out of his rightful claim to the throne. Pelias hates and fears Jason and wishes to get rid of him, but he cannot kill him outright. So Pelias hits upon a plan where he sends Jason on an almost certain suicide mission - and if the mission doesn't kill him, at least Pelias will be rid of him for a very long time, perhaps forever. Pelias tells Jason he is his successor to the throne, but to convince the
people that Jason is a worthy heir
to the throne, Pelias is sending
him to Colchis to retrieve the golden fleece.
Special consideration: On pages 17 - 18 the legend of the Golden Fleece is acted out with the following characters: Hera, Phrixus, Helle, evil stepmother and duped
father, the Golden Ram, Aeetes
Props: King Pelias’ cane, crown with spider webs, tray with
small bottles of medicine, dried plants, white powder, coins, golden fleece,
sword,
Sound Effect: Clock ticking wearily, thunder, music
underneath the myth of Phrixus and Helle.
Act out the story of “The Golden Ram” (page 17 – 18)
“Hallway” (Act 1, Scene 3; pages 20 – 24)
Characters: Hera, Athena, Jason, Pelias’ Son
Cast: Amber Florin, Melissa Navarro, Royer Perez,
Sound Effects: Drumming
Props: a ball
 |
| Roll Call |
“Roll Call” (Act 1, Scene 4; pages 24 – 32)
Setting: The Village Square
Characters: Everybody! Idmon, Meleaguer, Castor, Pollux, Tiphys,
Athena, Hera, Hercules, Hylas, Atalanta, Uncle
Cast: Beverly Phillips, Cooper Larnach, Akili Nkosi, Shania Vista, Melissa Navarro, Amber Florin, Gus Rodriguez, Wilber Garcia, Makenzie Jarret, Amanda Mendez, Christian Galvez
Synopsis: The heroes are introduced.
Description of the Argonauts
Atalanta: Female! Her father, wanting a son, left her as an
infant to die in the mountains. She was found and suckled by a female bear who
taught her how to fight. When Atalanta returned to the kingdom, her
father welcomed her. Atalanta is noted for being an extraordinary fast marathon runner. She swore as a young girl she would only marry
the man who could outrun her. Eventually she was defeated by a man who resorted to
trickery by rolling three irresistible apples, supplied by Athena, to distract
Atalanta during the race. Another tale was that she and Meleaguer were in love
but an oracle told her that losing her virginity would diminish her powers. Atalanta joins the Argonauts in
pursuit of the golden fleece.
Castor/Pollux: Twins. Their mother is Leda. Castor’s father
may be Tyndareus, the king of Sparta, and Pollux’s father is Zeus who disguised
himself as a swan to seduce Leda.
There are inconsistencies with the twins’ immortality – either they are
both mortal or only Pollux is immortal.
Castor and Pollux became the Gemini constellation which helps guide
sailors, and therefore are patrons of sailors. The twins are also patrons of
horsemen and athletes.
Hercules: The son of Zeus and a mortal woman, Alcemene. He is
hated by Hera because his mother had an affair with the goddess’ husband. Hera
sends snakes to baby Hercules’s crib to kill him, but the infant strangles the
snakes, giant pythons, with his bare hands – which only antagonizes Hera even
more. Constantly plagued throughout
his life by Hera’s harassment, Hercules is eventually driven insane and kills
his wife and six sons. Later, regaining his sanity, he deeply regrets the
murders and seeks the advice of the Oracle of Delphi to atone for his actions.
The Oracle of Delphi instructs Hercules to bring himself under the command of
King Eurythseus, a man whom Hercules despises as being deeply inferior to him,
but eventually wanting to purify himself of his horrible sins, Hercules submits to the king’s rule.
Eurthyseus orders the Greek hero
to perform twelve labors as penance for his horrific acts.
Hylas: A beautiful young man who is the lover of Hercules. He
is seduced by nymphs and disappears into an enchanted pool of water. Idmon, the blind argonaut blessed with second sight by Athena, foresees in a trance Hylas holding a
pitcher with leaves entangled in his hair. Idman at the time, however, does not understand the image. Later, Hercules instructs Hylas to take a pitcher to draw water from a stream. While he is at the stream, the seductive powers of the nymphs pull Hylas into the enchanted waters. When Hercules is told by one of the argonauts what has happened to Hylas, he becomes wild with grief running through the forests for days looking for him, and sleeping by the enchanted pond at night where he disappeared. The despondent Hercules sees his lover in a dream with leaves in his hair, holding the pitcher that he told him to take to draw water. In the dream Hylas tells him not to grieve, for the stream had always been there waiting for him, somewhere in the future - the stream and the nymphs were his fate.
Idmon: The blind argonaut who is blessed by Athena with second sight. He is the one who foresees the desperate end to the Argonauts' adventure. He foresees his own death during the journey to
Colchis but chooses to board the Argos anyway.
Meleager: Lover of Atalanta. In a earlier story, Meleager and Atalanta, along with the other
Greek warrors, hunt a ferocious
boar, which is terrorizing the country. Atalanta wounds the boar and Meleaguer
kills it. Meleaguer gives Atalanta
the boar’s hide for drawing the first drop of blood. Enraged that Meleageur has
given the head of the boar to a woman, his uncle tries to fight Meleager but the fight ends with Meleager killing him. When his mother, Altheaa, finds out Meleager has killed
her brother, she retrieves the brand which is locked smoldering in a box, sets
it afire and allows it to die out, thus killing her son, and fulfilling the
prophecy of the gods that he would live until the brand burned to cinders.
Uncle: Plexippus, the uncle to Meleaguer. He is angered that
Meleaguer has given the head of the boar, which they have all hunted, to
Atalanta, a woman. When Plexippus
tries to tear the boar’s skin away from Atalanta, Meleaguer kills him. Althaea, Meleaguer’s mother and sister
to Plexippus, becomes wild with
grief over her brother’s slaying,
and throws a charmed log onto a fire which consumes Meleaguer’s life as
it burns.
Typhis: He is the helmsman of the Argos and is guided by the
stars. Typhis is the most accomplished sailor of the Argonauts. According to some sources he dies from a mysterious illness, but other
sources say he dies of a snake bite.
“Libation/Prophecy” (Act 1, Scene 5; pages 33 – 37)
Setting: The Beach
Characters: Jason, Hercules, Meleaguer, Hylas, Athena, Idmon, Uncle,
other Argonauts
Actors: Royer Perez, Gus Rodriguez, Cooper Larnach, Wilber Garacia, Melissa Navarro, Beverly Phillips, Christian Galvez, the other argonauts.
This is a scene which starts off comically but ends on a dark note about what the future holds for the argonauts. The comic portion of the scene features Jason and Hercules regarding the election
of the expedition's leader. After Jason is elected, he offers a goblet of wine as libation
to the gods. Athena goes to Idman and places her hand over his heart, causing Idman to fall into a
trance and foresee the future – brief disturbing images which he cannot understand yet. Idman sees images of Hylas with his head covered with weeds and rushes, carrying a pitcher; he sees images of Pollux bearing wounds; of Meleaguer’s mother putting a
charmed log on the fire; of flame-spouting bulls plowing the earth; he sees the Fleece;
and he sees a young girl he doesn't recognize - Medea - covered in blood. And lastly, when the other men depart, leaving Idman alone with Athena, he confides to her that he saw his body dead and
lonely, lying in the dark in a far-off land. Athena tells him he doesn’t have
to board the ship but he says defiantly that he will join the Argonauts on their grand adventure, and then he boards the ship that will take him to his fate.
Setting: on the beach
Props: a goblet of wine
Music: ominous music
*“Launch” (Act 1, Scene 6; pages 37 – 38)
Setting: The ship
Characters: Athena, the Argonauts, their families
Actors: Everyone
Synopsis: The Argonauts are preparing for the voyage,
entering with rigging for the ship; all busying themselves with oars, oarlocks,
ropes, etc.
Music: hopeful, exuberant, driving
Props: Oars, ropes, sails, etc.
Projections of the night sky; sunrise
Colors of dark blues, then turning to golden colors
*“Visitation” (At 1, Scene 7; pages 38 – 43)
Setting: Pelias’s palace
Characters: Pelias, Cepheus, Asterion, Aeson – Jason’s father,
Alcimede – Jason’s mother; the Argonauts are slowly rowing the boat during this
scene
Cast: Anton Burman, Franklin Franco, Norman Thatch, Elizabeth DiMuro, Montserrat Robles, Cooper Larnach, Julia Robles
Synopsis: Pelias is looking for his son but is told by
Cepheus that he has sailed away on the Argos with Jason. Enraged that he has
been tricked by Jason and that he will never see his son again, Pelias sends
Cepheus and Asterion to pay a visit to Jason’s parents and little brother. A ghost rises from the underworld
through the trapdoor to tell Jason’s parents their son’s future. The parents decide to commit suicide
and have already made provisions that two characters, Aulos and Ancaeus, will
take care of the child after their deaths. They drink the poison together and
die. Cepheus and Asterion enter after their deaths, look at the baby and then
kill it.
Athena speaks about the two doors to Hades, one is for the
ordinary mortal, which leads to a room filled with horrible, monstrous
creatures; the other door is for those rare persons who have never spoken ill
of another, have never lied, and have loved motherless children as their own.
As Athena speaks, Pelias walks through the door, which leads to horrors.
As the door for the pure slowly opens, Aeson tenderly picks up his wife and carries her across the threshold as a
groom carries his bride.
 |
| "The Visitation" - the doors which lead to the Underworld |
Props: a ball; a puppet(?); two glasses of poison
Special Effects: a trap door; smoke
*“Boreas”
(Act 1, Scene 8; pages 44 – 47) Can be considerably shortened
Setting:
The ship
Characters:
The Argonauts, Athena, Boreas
Cast: Everyone, Melissa Navarro, Anton Burman
Synopsis:
The scene opens with the men rowing. Boreas, the Wind God, is angry that men
are for the first time plying the seas by trapping his winds in cloth
sails. He whips up a storm to
punish the men but Athena intervenes and calms him down.
Props:
a tiny boat which is a replica of the ship.
Sound
Effects: Wind
Special
Effects: Fans, doors opening and closing
*“Andromeda”
(Act 1, Scene 9; pages 48 – 53)
Setting:
The ship; the Argonauts are rowing the Argos
Characters:
Athena; the Argonauts; a priest from the Thracian cult; Andromeda
Featured:
Hercules, Hylas, Andromeda
Cast: Melissa Navarro, Elizabeth DiMuro, Gus Rodriguez, Wilber Garcia, Jess Gallegos
Special
Effects: The night sky projections followed by the rising sun;
Props:
Vast green material representing the sea, chains; rocks
As
Athena speaks, the men perform the actions – rowing; raising the sails at
sunrise
*The
men land on the land of Samothrace, the island of Electra, and encounter the
priest of the Thracian rites, who explains the “mysteries of the rites” to the
men, but we can’t tell you what they were because then we’d have to kill you.
The
men land on the shores of Ethiopia for a brief respite from the sea. Hercules
and Hylas take a romantic stroll along the beach where they encounter the
beautiful Andromeda chained to a rock, where she awaits being devoured by the
sea monster, Cetus. Every year a maiden must be sacrificed to Cetus, and this year,
she’s it. The stage is covered by
a green cloth, under which an actor crawls and growls as the monster. Hercules picks up one of the styrofoam
rocks Andromeda is chained to, and bonks the actor/monster on the head. The
green material is then swallowed up by the trap door, Andromeda thanks them and runs off, and the men continue on their merry way.
Special
Effects: The night sky projections followed by the rising sun;
Props:
Vast green material representing the sea, chains; Styrofoam rocks
Music:
Beautiful, adventurous, wondrous, driving
*“The
Women of Lemnos” (Act 1, Scene 9; pages 54 – 62)
Characters:
Athena; the Argonausts; the women of Lemnos: four speaking roles; dead guy and Rumor, an annoying goddess who gossips
Synopsis: As the Argonauts sail past the Island of Lemnos, a corpse sits up in astonishment at the sight of men sailing on the seas. The island has a cursed history. Many years earlier, the men of Lemnos returned home from a war loaded with riches, including slave girls taken as war booty. Rumor, an annoying goddess who was kicked out of Olympus because of her lying tongue, goes to the island where she spreads the rumor that the Lemnos men have fallen in love with the slave girls and no longer care for their own women. In retaliation the Lemnos women kill all the men - young, old - all the men, they kill. Now, the hair of all the young virgins have all turned white, and no children's voices can be heard echoing in the streets. The Argonauts land on the island where they are greeted with open arms by the lonely women. After a stay of quite a few months, Hercules - who has no interest in women - gets impatient to leave and throws a fit. The Argonauts quickly pack up to resume their voyage to Colchis to retrieve the Golden Fleece.
Special
consideration: A song explaining the story. Can be cut and recited with music
playing underneath. The women can lead the men offstage – the grand can be closed
– and we can hear them partying. Men can
creep from the boat to peer cautiously then excitedly through the curtain and
quickly scoot in, joining in on the fun. Or there can a brief choreographed
dance depicting the party.
Special
Effects:
Props:
Music:
Quick, spirited
 |
Hylas and the Water Nymphs by John William Waterhouse
|
“Hercules”
(Act 1, Scene 10; pages 62 – 74)
Setting:
An island where there are water nymphs
Characters:
Hercules, Hera, Jason, Idman, Meleaguer, Hylas, Dryope, Polyphemus, Uncle, Castor,
Pollux, Tiphys, Athena,
Featured:
Hercules, Hylas, Dryope, Athena,
Hera, Polyphemus, Meleaguer.
Cast: Gus Rodriguez, Amber Florin, Royer Perez, Beverly Phillips, Cooper Larnach, Wilber Garcia, Christian Galvez, Akili Nkosi, Shania Vista, Melissa Navarro
Special
Note: Idman is blind and has second sight.
Synopsis:
Hercules challenges the men to a rowing contest, and starts ranting like Donald
Trump about how great he is – the greatest, the fastest – how he strangled the
snakes sent by Hera and how it wasn’t his fault that Hera couldn’t keep her
husband at home. Hera, who happens to be nearby, overhears and snaps his oar in
half. Hercules throws a fit, but Jason placates him by pointing out a heavily
forested island nearby where he can find timber to make a new oar. So they
land.
The
Argonauts disperse, leaving Hercules and Hylas alone on the shore. Hercules
gives Hylas orders to take a pitcher, fill it with water from a nearby mountain
stream, come back and make camp for them while he goes looking for a tree
to make his oar. As they leave, Idman overhears, and remembering his vision, asks if Hylas is carrying a
pitcher. There follows a beautiful speech by Athena about the nature of life,
loss, and tragedy. “That’s just the way it happens, isn’t it? Unbearable loss.
It doesn’t announce itself…there are no portents: the birds fly aimless in the
air, not forming patterns, the stars glide by in their timeless course –
nothing out of place, right up to the very edge.”
Hylas
arrives at a nearly stream and is met by Dryope, a water nymph, who seduces him
and pulls him into the stream with her. Polyphemus hears Hylas cry out and goes
to look for him but cannot find him. Hercules reenters lugging a huge tree as
Polyphemus runs in, breathless, to tell Hercules he heard Hylas cry out, and
went to look for him everywhere but he is nowhere to be found. Hecules becomes
distraught and searches for Hylas for seven days, but without success. The
Argonauts are now bored and irritable. A good wind is blowing and they could
have already been at Colchis had they not been held up by Hercules. They talk among themselves. Meleager
boasts that he has a share in immortality that even Hercules cannot claim –
that when he was born the gods decreed that his life would last only as long as
the burning of a charmed log, but his quick thinking mother seized the log and
locked it away where it is still burning.
As long as the log burns, Meleager will live.
The Argonauts conclude that Hercules has
lost his mind and Hylas is either dead or insane, so they set sail, leaving
Hercules alone on the island. Hercules prays fruitlessly to Hera while she
watches, relishing his distress.
Athena tries to reason with Hera who shrugs her off and leaves. Athena
weaves a spell on Hercules, putting him to sleep, and then summons the soul of
Hylas to come and speak words of encouragement and comfort to him. Hylas
whispers to his sleeping friend, “All my life this stream has been awaiting me.
It was my fate – there’s nothing we can do.” Athena rouses Hercules by
reminding him of the pretty horses that Andromeda – the girl tied out there on
the cliffs – promised him if he helped her. Athena whispers to him, cajoling him with “the pretty horses
are there in their stables, growing fat waiting for him.” Hercules considers
for a moment and says, “Very well, then”, and departs, holding Hylas’ pitcher.
Props:
Huge
tree, pitcher
Special
Effects:
Trap
door, tangled leaves in Hylas’ hair.
Music:
Eerie
music for Hylas and Dryope,
Tragic,
driving, searching music for Hercules’ search for Hylas
Poignant
music for the Hercules, Hylas, and Athena
*
“Amycus the Boxer” (Act 1, Scene 11; pages 74 – 80) Could be cut
Transition
Music
Characters:
Argonauts, Amycus the Boxer, Dymas – a frightened inhabitant of the island
Synopsis:
The Argonauts are disembarking on an island when a frightened inhabitant named
Dymas runs to them screaming “Depart! Depart at once - and take me with
you!” It is the island of
Amycus they have landed on, where a huge bullying monster rules, challenging
every sailor who has the misfortune to land in his kingdom to a fight which always ends in the sailor's
grisly death. When the monster Amycus stomps in to the scene and calls the
Argonauts “trash”, Pollux, the boxer, is immediately enraged, accepts the
challenge, and after a great deal of running around, screaming, and fighting,
defeats the brute. After Amycus’s defeat, Jason tells Dymas the Argonauts are
going to Colchis to take back the Golden Fleece. Dymas replies that they will
not be successful; they will never get the Golden Fleece away from Aeetes. Aeetes is a hateful and arrogant tyrant
who believes that the Golden Fleece is a source of his power – and besides, the
fleece is guarded by a dragon that never sleeps. As a reward for helping the
Argonauts, Jason takes Dymas with him, who vows to help Jason in any way he
can.
Special
Consideration: The giant is composed of two men, one sitting on the other’s
shoulders, covered in a costume with boxing gloves.
“Harpies”
(Act 1, Scene 10; pages 80 – 85)
Transitional
Music: Theme from “The Birds”
Setting:
The Island of the Harpies
Characters:
Jason, Dymas, Idmon, Atalanta, Zetes, Phineas, Harpies
Synopsis:
The Argonauts land on the island, which Dymas says is the island of
Phineas. Idman, overhearing,
supplies the information that Zeus decided long ago that mortals should not
know what lies in store for them, but Phineas, disobeying him, told men too
much. For this insubordination,
Zeus has cursed him with eternal life but a life that hangs very, very close to
death. Now, every time Phineas tries to eat he is prevented by screaming,
reeling Harpies, who fly in and harass him by stealing, vomiting and pooping on
his food. Phineas is now 200
hundred plus years old and is on the perpetual edge of death. As the Argonauts are discussing him, we
can see Phineas, an ancient stinking mess, crawling in the distance unnoticed
by the men. He is holding a plate of food in his shaking hand and is followed
by a flock of squawking harpies. He begs the men to save him and asks that
Zetes, one of Jason’s men, the son of Boreas, the Wind God, who has the power
of flight, come to chase the Harpies away. Zetes and a plate of food arrive from the ship, so
while Zetes chases the Harpies away and Phineas eats, he tells the
Argonauts – quickly, because part
of the curse is that when the Harpies leave, so must his life – how to sail
past the Clashing Rock. The great prophet reveals that there is betrayal in
Jason’s future, but Jason presses him on how to win back the Golden Fleece.
With his dying breath, the old man tells him “Look…to the corner…of the room.
Fare…well….” Jason does not
understand the last instruction.
Props:
A plate of food
Special
consideration: Women dressed in birdlike rags
Special
effects: sounds of birds squawking
Music:
The sea, something suggestive of seagulls. The theme music for “The Birds” (?)
“Clashing
Rocks” (Act 1, Scene 11; pages 85 – 88)
Transitional
Music
Storm
at Sea, on the ship Argo
Characters:
Athena, Castor, Uncle, Idman, Jason, Tiphys,
Synopsis:
The men are frightened and desperately trying to row through a ferocious storm.
They hear before they see the clashing of two huge monstrous mountains,
clashing – drawing apart – clashing
together again and again. Jason shouts words of encouragement to them.
Meanwhile, we see Athena with two stones in her hands. She clashes the stones
together and pulls them apart throughout the scene.
Hera enters dragging a small replica of the Argo on a
string. Euphemos is instructed by Tiphys to release the bird; at the same time,
Hera manipulates a tiny replica of the bird between the stones held in Athena’s
hands. Athena strains to hold the stones apart. The men report that the bird
has made it through and Hera now pulls the little boat through Athena’s legs.
The men make it through and rising before them now is the forbidding palace of
Aeetes. The sun shines and its rays hit something golden – it is the fleece
hanging on a barren tree.
Props:
A bird on a stick, a toy boat, two rocks, a golden fleece
Sound
Effects: Enormous booming sound of clashing rocks, wind, and churning seas.
Music:
Ominous, driving, relentless
Special
Consideration:
Athena
and Hera can “dance the clashing of the stones”. Hera can have one stone;
Athena can have the other stone.
Euphemos can fly the bird between the stones and then Hera can “dance”
the boat between the stones.
Black
out!
Act 2
Music
“Schemes” (Act 2, Scene 1;
pages 89 – 91)
Characters: Hera, Athena
Synopsis: While Athena is
sharpening her spear with a rock, the goddesses are discussing how to help the
Argonauts fleece the Golden Fleece from Aeetes.
Hera asks Athena about
Aeetes’ daughter, Medea. Uninterested and not getting the point, Athena replies
that Medea is a sorceress, able to cast spells and charms, call up storms, and
command birds and animals. Hera, excited, demands that they pay a visit to
Aphrodite at once! Athena is less than enthusiastic at having to deal with
Aphrodite, whom she considers beneath her and insignificant. Hera warns her not to be rude to the Goddess of Love for they are going to need her. And so they
set off for Aphrodite’s lair.
Props: a spear, a stone
“Aphrodite” (Act 2, Scene 2;
pages 91 – 96)
Traveling Music as the
Goddesses sashay over to Aphrodite’s palace.
Setting: Aphrodite’s boudoir
Characters: Athena, Hera,
Aphrodite, Eros, servants
Synopsis: Aphrodite is
sitting in her boudoir being pampered by her beauty slaves – hair being
coiffed, nails being manicured and pedicured, make-up being liberally
applied. The goddesses fly
in and lay out the problem to Aphrodite who immediately squeals she cannot go
to war, looks at her nails and goes “EEEEW!” But what they are asking her to do is to have her brat son,
Eros, plunge an arrow into the breast of Medea, making her fall in love with
Jason. Although young, Medea is a
great sorceress who must know the mind and ways of her father, and she can then
help Jason steal the fleece away from him. But Aphrodite argues that she cannot
control her son, he is a rude, disrespectful, contemptuous jerk – in short – a
punk! And that Hera and Athena would have an easier time of controlling him
than she. The goddesses can barely
control their amusement at Aphrodite’s complaints. But Aphrodite agrees when
Hera entreats her as an old friend – and when Athena points her spear in her
direction.
The Goddesses fly off
laughing. Athena says that she doesn’t understand love at all, but she is
convinced Hera’s plan will work, having seen the crazy stupid things love can
drive mortals to do.
Aphrodite calls her son in
where he has been doing something awful and mischievous. In the production we will have Eros as a punk with
spiked hair, eye make-up (ala the droogies in A CLOCKWORK ORANGE) and a spiked
dog collar around his neck. He is
thoroughly rude and disrespectful.
Aphrodite tells him she wants him to do a favor for her. He immediately
wants to know what she’ll give him.
She says she will give him a gorgeous ball that unleashes an airy trail
of sparks like a meteor when tossed, IF he shoots the maiden daughter of Aeetes
full of desire for Jason. He is skeptical and makes her swear an oath for “no
one is more deceitful than you! Aphrodite swears she won’t cheat him so long as
he shoots the maiden with his arrow of love. A deal is made between Aphrodite and Eros.
Special Considerations: a
new setting; a vanity, a settee, frilly chairs
Props: Athena’s spear,
brushes, combs, nail file, mirror
“Aeetes” (Act 2, Scene 2;
pages 97 – 102)
Setting: Aeetes’ palace
Characters: Aeetes’ servants,
Castor, Jason, Idmon, Eros, Aphrodite, Medea
Aeetes meets with Jason and
the Argonauts. Medea is sitting in the corner unseen. Jason asks Aeetes
politely for the Golden Fleece, but Aeetes will have none of it, instead
taunting and insulting Jason and his men, calling them savages, pirates,
homeless brigands in search of plunder. He threatens to cut off their hands and
tongues, to burn them alive in the hull of their ship. But Jason persists,
offering gifts and their service to him in exchange for the Golden Fleece.
Aeetes strikes a cruel deal with Jason – two days hence, be prepared to yoke
two fire breathing bulls and plow the fields of Ares, and into each furrow
plant teeth from a terrible serpent. If Jason can do that, then the Fleece will
be his. If Jason fails, then Aeetes will make an example of him and the
Argonauts for other brigands who are brazen enough to try to land in his
kingdom and steal from him – he will burn Jason and the Argonauts alive in the
hull of their ship. Aeetes departs with his court. Eros and Aphrodite enter.
Idmon sees the girl in the corner and whispers to Jason, “Look in the corner!”
All time slows down and a sustained note of crystal purity sounds as Eros
shoots the arrow and Aphrodite guides the arrow slowly, slowly towards Medea
which hits her in the chest, leaving a crimson stain on her dress. The flow of time returns to normal life
as Medea runs from the room. Jason looks around and says simply, “There was
only a girl there; she’s gone now.”
Special Considerations:
Medea being hit with Eros’s
arrow. Sustained note – “Apollo” by Brian Eno;
Choreography with Eros,
Aphrodite and arrow. Red stain on dress.
Props: Bow and arrow, red
stain on dress.
Music: Intense, beautiful,
aching.
“Medea” (Act 2, Scene 3;
pages 102 – 104)
Setting: Medea’s chambers
Characters: Medea, Athena, Three
Men
Synopsis: Medea, alone in
her chambers, is in love and runs from girlish giddiness to weeping and back
again. She replays over and over in her mind the scene between Jason and her
father. How Jason stood up to him. How he looked when he said, “Believe me, I
shall!” How his voice sounded.
Athena enters and speaks, as three men also enter, and when she says,
“She went to bed,” Medea falls
back into the mens’arms and as they bear her up, she twists and turns, now
rising above their heads, now falling in their arms in constant slow motion.
“Back at Camp” (Act 2, Scene
4; pages 104 – 107)
Setting: Outside, at the
Argonauts’ camp
Characters: Tiphys, Jason, Idmon,
Dymas, Uncle, Meleaguer
Synopsis: The men return to
their camp. They open the trapdoor and firelight shines up. Meleaguer sits
apart. Athena and Hera watch from above.
Tiphys tries to comfort
Jason by saying that no one would blame him if he returns home without the
Golden Fleece, but Jason refuses to give up. Idmon urges Jason to try to
remember what was in the corner of the room. Jason replies that there was
nothing in the corner, no weapsons, no treasure, nothing except a girl. Dymas
is surprised and immediately understands the significance of that girl – she is
the daughter of Aeetes, Medea – although only a girl, already a great sorceress
who can stop the moon in its tracks. Circe, the great witch, is her aunt.
Meleaguer is offended that they should rely on the skill of a girl and not on
their own valor, cleverness, and strength. Jason is reminded by Idmon that Phineas,
the great prophet himself, directed his gaze into the corner. But Jason frets
how could he ever get close to Aeetes’ daughter? Dymas knows that Medea is a
devotee of Hecate who has a temple nearby. Idmon notes that tomorrow is a full
moon and she will probably be attending the temple in worship of Hecate. He
encourages Jason to slip through the woods and find her there. But Meleaguer
growls that Jason’s time would be better spent sleeping to conserve his energy
for battling the flame snorting bulls. Idmon advises Jason to do as he says and
seek Medea in the woods tomorrow.
Music: Quiet with a sense of
expectation
Special Consideration: a
trapdoor with a fire
“Circe” (Act 2, Scene 5;
pages 107 – 113)
Characters: Athena, Hera, Medea
Synopsis: Disguising herself
as Circe, Medea’s aunt, Hera appears in Medea’s bedroom late at night to urge
her to marry soon. Medea confesses that she is plagued with strange
contradictory feelings, and she is deeply troubled for her father has betrothed
her to Styrus, a man for whom she feels nothing. Hera as Circe craftily tells the young girl that she just encountered
Jason who pleaded with her to ask Medea to intervene on his behalf and help him
avoid a cruel death. Hera
encourages her to begin in earnest her use of the magic knowledge she has
amassed – all the potions she has learned to create, the spells, charms, and
incantations she has learned. Hera then takes her leave of Medea, who wrestles
with these strange, contradictory feelings she has – she has fallen
passionately in love with Jason, but is terrified that her father, her brothers
and her country will see her as a betraying whore. She contemplates suicide and
raises a small vial of poison to her lips. Suddenly, the door to Hades
opens. Her name is whispered,
“Medea, look to the sun!” She rises, goes to the window as golden light floods
the room; the sun has never seemed as sweet. Medea puts the vial away and reaches for another vial and a
small stone.
Music: Quiet, night time,
poignant
Props: two vials, a stone
“By Moonlight” (Act 2, Scene
6; pages 113 – 118)
Music: Beautiful, romantic,
mysterious
Setting: In the forest, near
Hecate’s temple.
Characters: Jason, Medea, Hera,
Aphrodite, a Fury
Synopsis: Aphrodite,
carrying a bucket, enters from one door, and pulls Medea into the woods.
Aphrodite places the bucket at Medea’s feet. At the same time Hera enters from
the other door and pushes Jason into the woods. The two are standing at
opposite ends of the stage staring at each other. Jason immediately falls in
love with her. He asks her to help
him. She asks him if he is aware what he is asking of her? These trees, which act as witnesses to
their secret meetings, must wonder if they know this young girl. When Jason
swears eternal gratitude to her if she saves his life and helps him win the
Golden Fleece, she gives her oath, herself, her name, her honor and even her
soul to help him. Medea gives him
a vial of magic potion to mix with water from Hecate’s magic spring, and tells
him to bathe himself in the mixture. This magic potion, Medea tells him, will
protect him from all harm for twenty-four hours only. Jason takes off his shirt and begins to bathe while Medea
watches spell bound.
There is something else she
needs to tell him – that the serpent seeds he will plant in the furrows will
turn to warriors. Medea hands him a stone. Throw the stone, which once belonged
to the goddess of Discord, in the middle of the warriors, who will begin
fighting among themselves, she instructs him. She then takes the cloth and bathes Jason’s back with the
magic waters. He tells Medea her
name will live forever and kisses her. She asks him what part of the sky she
should look at when he has gone, what star to guide her gaze toward his native
land. Jason kneels and vows he
will take her home with him, where she will be greeted by his people as his
bride. The lovers kiss.
Scratching is heard. A
rustling. And a cackling. A fury flies in and watches them, taking note of what
is being said. The lovers do not see him. Jason swears if he ever abandons her,
may her magic turn against him in their own home. May he be terrified, and let
there be no one who can help him.
And if there are worse things she can do against him, then do it, for he
would deserve the worst that she could do if he were to abandon her. The fury hears this, and cackling,
flies off. Jason’s future has been
set.
Props: a bucket, a cloth, a
stone.
Costumes: A fury's black bird-like costume
“Bulls” (Act 2, Scene 7;
pages 118 – 120)
Music: Dramatic, Strong,
Ominous, like a wild plunging bull, drumming
Setting: A field
Characters: Idmon, Meleaguer, Aeetes,
Jason, Medea, Skeleton Soldiers
Synopsis: Idmon addresses
Aeetes, telling him that Jason is waiting on the field of Ares to yoke his
flame spouting bulls. Aeetes laughs at Idmon and commands the bulls be brought
in. Jason enters holding a yoke and over his shoulder, a bag of serpents’
teeth. The bulls enter and storm
towards Jason, throwing him down. Medea casts her spell. The bulls become
entranced and allow themselves to be yoked by Jason. He begins to plow the field, and empties the serpents’ teeth
in the furrows. Medea collapses from the effort of the spell. Jason taunts
Aeetes with his triumph. Aeetes, angered, calls up the skeleton soldiers who
stand up and rush him. Medea shouts to Jason to throw the stone in the middle
of the skeletons. He does and the skeleton soldiers begin to fight among
themselves, and run off. Jason’s
victory is decisive. His men cheer and run onto the field in triumph.
Props: a yoke, a bag of
serpent teeth
Special Considerations: The
bull and the skeleton soldiers should be dancers. The beginning of the yoking
scene should be almost like a dance – a parrying and feinting, until Medea
casts her spell, which may be holding up her arms toward the bull, causing him
to become entranced. The yoke can be a leather and chain contraption with reins
that can be draped around the “bull’s”
shoulders. The bull then leads Jason as Jason holding the reins, drops the
serpents’ teeth in the ground.
Dancers, dressed in black
leotards with skeletons painted on the leotards in white day-glo, are lying on
the floor at the beginning of the scene. As Jason sows the seeds, the skeletons
stand up, begin to stalk him and are about to assault him, until Medea reminds
him to throw the stone. Then the skeletons turn towards each other and begin to
fight – throwing punches, pushing, knocking each other down, kicking, etc. and
then running off.
“Escape and Dragon” (Act 2,
Scene 8; pages 120 – 124)
Music: Fast, furious
Setting: The field of Ares,
the dragon’s lair, a tree with the Golden Fleece
Characters: Aeetes, Medea, Jason,
Styros, Apsyrtos, the dragon
Synopsis: Continuation of
the preceding scene. As Aeetes is screaming at Medea, demanding to know if she is
responsible for Jason’s victory, she flees in pursuit of Jason. Aeetes is
enraged by what he sees as Medea's betrayal, and threatens to tear her from limb to limb; he turns in a rage to
Styros, her fiancé, and to Apsyrtos, her brother, and orders them to gather a
fleet the world has never seen before and drag her back home, while he devises a
thousand ways to watch that "muttering bitch die".
Medea runs to Jason and begs to know if he will
be true to her; he assures her he will be, but reminds her that he still needs to get the
Golden Fleece. Medea says the gods
have heard his words of loyalty and the trees have witnessed his vows, and
convinced of his trustworthiness, she leads him to the dragon that never sleeps
that is guarding the Golden Fleece.
She tells Jason to stand back for it is only she who can approach the
beast. She speaks sweetly to the
dragon as if it were a beloved dog or cat, and blows a magic potion in the dragon’s
face which causes both Jason and the dragon to fall asleep. She rouses Jason
awake and tells him to seize the Golden Fleece while the dragon is asleep. She stays behind with the sleeping
dragon, murmuring words of love,
and regret, and apologies to the dragon for betraying it. She urges it to forgive her and to
forget her, and not to look for her after she leaves. Jason comes running in
with the Golden Fleece and the two run to the Argo for their escape.
Props: The Golden Fleece, tree branches to simulate a forest
Special Considerations: The
dragon – it can be either imaginary or a cut out of some sort. The dragon could
actually be an actor.
Another consideration is that there are two settings in this scene - the Field of Ares and the forest of the sleeping dragon.
“Pursuit” (Act 2, Scene 8;
pages 124 – 129)
Music: Fast, furious, dramatic, drumming
Setting: The Argo
Characters: Dymas, Idmon, Tiphys,
Meleaguer, Jason, Medea, Athena, Pollux
Synopsis: The men are
waiting on the ship for Jason’s return when they see him running towards the ship with another person. The Argonauts think at first that he is
being pursued but as Jason and the other figure come closer the sailors are
shocked to see that it is a girl, Medea, who is running with Jason. As he and Medea board the ship he
orders the Argo to set sail immediately - Aeetes is enraged and in hot pursuit,
he tells his men. Tiphys suggests that they take a different route home - that
they sail up the river and find another passage to the sea – a plan Jason
agrees with.
Fast cut to Apsytos making a speech to an unseen
crowd of men from Colchis, whipping the Colchians into a fury over the invasion
of their home, and the theft of their national treasure, the Golden Fleece, and
the kidndapping of their Princess. Apsytos urges them to fight against this outrage,
this humiliation of their great and noble people. He wants all the Argonauts
killed and their ship sunk to the bottom of the sea as revenge for their show
of contempt for the Colchians.
Fast cut to Jason urging
Medea that they marry now to prevent sovereign rulers from kidnapping her and taking
her back to her father; as Jason’s wife, she would no longer belong to her father
and could not be taken away from her husband. Medea immediately agrees. And so
they are married and they consummate their marriage on the Golden Fleece on the
deck of the Argo, while the men row through the night.
Athena speaks of love as the
great bane of humanity but during that night Jason and Medea’s love is the
closest two mortals may know of heaven
on earth.
Meanwhile, the flotilla of
Aeetes is getting closer to the Argo. Aeetes, Apsytos and Styros advance on
stage pulling small replicas of ships on cords behind them. They leave them encircling
the sleeping Medea and then exit.
The men begin to mutter
about this girl, Medea, endangering the lives of the brave, strong and loyal
Argonauts. Medea, waking, hears them, and standing up we see the flash of keen
intelligence, strength, and cunning of Medea of lore and legend. She tells them that her kinsmen don’t
want just her - they want to kill all of the Argonauts, and to sink their ship
to the bottom of the sea. Medea continues in a strong unshakable voice - it is
because of her that the men are still alive, she tells them. And it will be because of her that the
men will survive. She is the only one who can help the men survive. And she has a plan to do just that. But the men must listen to her.
Props: Flotilla of small
ships on cords – about three.
Special Considerations:
“Styrus and Apsyrtos” (Act
2, Scene 9; pages 130 – 134)
Music: Suggestive of high
winds, storms at sea
Setting: Two settings:
Olympus, the Colchian ship, land around the Argonauts’ encampment.
Character: Hera, Athena, Styrus,
Apsyrtos, Jason, Medea, a Colchian messenger
Cast: Amber Florin, Melissa Navarro, Norman Thatch, Gus Torres, Royer Perez, Chynna Tumalad, Cheyenne Dioh,
Synopsis: Hera and Athena
are arguing about how badly things are going: Athena calls into question Hera’s
strategem of using love to procure the Golden Fleece – couldn’t she foresee
that love would make a mess of things? But Hera has a plan to unleash Borea’s
winds against the Colchian fleet. “We’ll make those Colchian ships bob like
corks!” she promises.
Cut to: Styros, Medea’s fiancé, dangling from
the rigging of his boat, being whipped by the winds (Hera). He is screaming
taunts and challenges and insults to Jason while Apsyrtos stands below
screaming at him to come down. Styros slides down the rigging, the wind blows
him into the trapdoor, where he goes down once, twice, three times and he’s
out. Hera announces his drowning.
Cut to: A Colchian messenger
approaches Apsyrtos, Medea’s brother,
with an important message from Medea, urging him to meet with her
tonight close by the Argonauts’ camp.
The messenger informs him that Medea is frightened of her Argonaut
captors, and he has no idea what
she has been forced to endure.
Cut to: Late that night near
the Argonauts’ encampment, Apsyrtos is waiting impatiently for his sister to
arrive. Medea appears, wearing the Golden Fleece around her shoulders. Apsyrtos
angrily informs her that Styros has drowned. He demands to know if those storms
were whipped up by her - an accusation she staunchly denies. As Apsyrtos grabs
the Golden Fleece from her shoulders, Jason comes up from behind and stabs him
to death with his spear. The two
lovers stop, stunned by the
momentous, horrific act they just committed – fratricide, the killing of a
brother. Medea whispers to Jason, We are bound together forever, now. This
act…has bound us. Forever.” After a pause, Jason nods.
Props: Dangling rope, the
Golden Fleece, wrecked toy ships, trap door.
Special Considerations: A
dangling rope from which Syrtos hangs, suggestive of the rigging on his ship; a
trapdoor in which Syrtos “drowns”.
He bobs up one, two, three times and then dies. The actor can be splashed with water so
he looks as if he is in the sea drowning.
“Return”
(Act 2, Scene 10; pages 134 – 141)
Music:
Desperate, Tragic, Enduring
Setting:
Shallow water, shoals, desert, the Argo
Character:
The Argonauts, the Goddesses of the Desert, Alcimede, Athena, Hera, Idmon, Medea,
Cast: Alexy Smith, Makenzie Jarret, Julia, Melissa Navarro, Amber Florin, Beverly Phillips, Chynna Tumalad, Cheyenne Dioh.
Synopsis:
The Argonauts are stranded in the desert. The water inlet that would lead them
to the sea has dried up, leaving shoals, and sand bars. The men are desperate. The Goddesses of the
Desert speak to Jason in oracular riddles, telling him that the ship is their mother. Idmon figures out that the riddle means that the ship. like their mothers, have carried them in her belly, and that the men must now take care of her as she took care of them by picking her up and carrying her through the desert until they reach the sea. Jason
tells the men about the visitation of the goddesses and their words of wisdom.
The men do as they are told and eventually they do find the sea, but on the
morning they are to set sail, Idmon dies – from a fever. Jason plants Idmon’s oar upright. Then Tiphys dies – from snake
bite. Tiphys plants his oar upright,
and lies down beside it. Then Uncle and Meleager die – in the most trivial way of all – in
a fight over who has to fetch the water. Meleager kills his uncle; then Athena
recounts what happens next – Meleager’s mother goes to the casket where she has
kept that half-burnt log, and puts it into the fire. As the charmed log flares
up into flames, Meleager’s life is consumed and burns away. The Argonauts, those who died are resurrected, and those who left, re-enter and resume their
positions on board the Argo. As Athena recounts the story, the men finally
reach home. But Pelias is dead, Jason’s parents – dead, Jason’s infant brother –
dead.
Now,
Jason enters from one side of the stage; Medea enters from the other side.
Jason is pathetically trying to explain – badly and clumsily - that he must marry a princess to secure his position as king. She responds with a deadly, "I see." He exits through the door to the “After
World”. Medea removes the arrow and the harness that holds the arrow and lets
them fall to the floor. The Argonauts come back out and as a Greek chorus, speak ironically the words of the deceived young men at the start of every war.
Props: Oars, The Boat, The Harness with the Arrow, the Log
Special
Considerations: The men stick their oars in the grating of the ship as they die.
The men carry their boat over head.
Conclusion:
