Andromache

Marked by the lasting remembrance of the Trojan War and the constant lamentation of its feelings, Euripides’s Andromache carries a powerful message: war generates hatreds that cause devastation far beyond the battlefields. The memories of the past war are shared by all the characters, even those who lived it in the distance. After the war, each of them now lives personal dramas that are the result of this collective tragedy. It is the drama of Andromache that occupies the main place: already in Greece, as a slave to the son of Achilles, she is the victim of her mistress’s hatred who, with the help of his father, tries to achieve her and her son’s deaths, this one helplessly witnessing the impending tragedy. However, they are both spared deaths, thanks to Peleus’s help. Overcoming this first tension, the action gains a new breadth, making us aware of Hermione’s drama, Orestes’s past sufferings and, finally, the tragedy that strikes Peleus. Bound to a rigid chess match by strong cultural and social constraints and experiencing the limits of these conditions and their own identities, these Andromache’s characters measure themselves and their world, by the diverse extent that guides moderation and excess. Before the end, the deity that restores order is manifested, reminding mortals of their condition, and rewarding Peleus’s conduct. As for Andromache, overcome another trial, unharmed and reunited with her son, keeps the hope and the noble serenity that inspires the righteous.

Translation: José Ribeiro Ferreira

Production: Elisabete Cação

Staging: João Baptista

Stage manager: Tânia Mendes

Choreography: Andreia Morado

Sound: Ricardo Neiva

Lights: Luís Carvalho e Vanessa Baptista

Cast:

Cátia Coelho

Cimar Santos

Claudia Sousa

Cristiana Almeida

Diogo Ribeirinha

Elvira Fueta

Lucas Galho

Monique Carvalho

Ricardo Acácio