An overriding theme of Molière’s Tartuffe is not one of religion directly, but of that age-old concern of comme il faut, propriety, and appearance versus reality. The central problem that the play confronts is not with Tartuffe’s being a religious hypocrite, but with the fact that he uses his powers to manipulate others and — perhaps most importantly — the fact that his hypocrisy becomes known.
Archive | Drama RSS feed for this section
Shenandoah Shakespeare Express
What a treat! I was able to see more theatre in the last two days than I have in the last two years thanks to Dr. Greg McNamara’s efforts to bring the Shenandoah Shakespeare Express’ “Rife with Mischief” tour to Macon State College for two performances and two workshops. I was unable to attend the [...]
Strindberg and Helium
There are really no words to describe Strindberg and Helium. I nearly fell off my chair laughing when I first saw these Flash shorts. I’d describe it, but it’s better if you just look for yourself. If you’re unfamiliar with August Strindberg, I recommend Miss Julie: “No! To be happy for — two days, a [...]
The Lessons of Titus
Titus Andronicus goes to great — almost hyperbolic — lengths to make this clear, though it is often overlooked trying to make ethical sense out of a morality tale. I believe that Titus Andronicus shares this quality with Euripides’ Medea: both of these plays unsettle us in ways that we might not be willing to face.
Character v. Fate
When Sophocles wrote Oedipus Rex, the cultural and intellectual zeitgeist of Athens was undergoing a paradigm shift, from the privileging of one cosmological view to that of another. The gods were dying and being replaced by Socrates and his ilk: those who wanted to eschew the days of superstition and prophecy in favor of a more secure faith in the educated man’s ability to figure the universe and his place in it out for himself without depending on the mystical prognostications from spastic oracles.