Genesius Guild's “Iphigenia in Aulis" at Lincoln Park -- June 24 through July 2.
Saturday, June 24, through Sunday, July 2
Lincoln Park, 1120 40th Street, Rock Island IL
Famed for being the last of the extant works by the playwright Euripides, and featuring some of the most famous characters, locales, and events in the classical-Greek canon, Iphigenia in Aulis serves as the second production in Genesius Guild's 2023 season, its June 24 through July 2 run marking the first time the masked tragedy has been performed in Rock Island's Lincoln Park since 1959.
Written between 408 and 406 BC, the year of Euripides' death, Iphigenia in Aulis was first produced in 405 BC in a trilogy with The Bacchae and Alcmaeon in Corinth by his son or nephew, and the work won first place at the City Dionysia in Athens. Set prior to the commencement of the Trojan War, the piece revolves around the strong resistance by Clytemnestra to the decision of her husband Agamemnon, the leader of the Greek coalition before and during the Trojan War, to ritually sacrifice and kill his daughter Iphigenia, act act designed to appease the goddess Artemis. This would allow his troops to set sail to preserve their honor in order to battle and ultimately sack Troy, actions which would result in the killing of all of Troy's men and the enslavement of all of its women by Agamemnon and the Greek men. These latter events are central to several of the Greek tragedies such as Euripides' Hecuba and The Trojan Women, as well as Aeschylus' play Agamemnon.
The conflict in Iphigenia at Aulis also focuses closely on Iphigenia's initial resistance to the idea of dying/being killed and her relationship with her father and, to a lesser degree, on a young Achilles, who is drawn into the situation by Agamemnon. Also known to the audience of Athenians who witnessed the play's performance would have been the fact that, as a result of Agamemnon's actions, after the war he will be killed upon his homecoming by his wife, Clytemnestra, and that she in turn will be killed by her son, Orestes, in order to avenge his father. All of these figures appear in Euripides' tragedy.
Making her long-awaited directorial debut with Iphigenia in Aulis is area-theatre veteran Dee Canfield, who has performed with nearly every stage organization in the area and has been a Genesius Guild favorite for decades, her credits including roles in Electra (in which she played Clytemnestra), Richard III, and Medea. Canfield's cast boasts Kate Farence in the title character, Alan Gardiner-Atkinson as Agamemnon, Kathy Calder as Clytemnestra, Mark Garden as Menelaus, Joe Sager as Achilles, Jacob Lund as the Servant , and Kevin Keck as the Messenger.
Fellow Genesius Guild veteran Melita Tunnicliff assumes the role of Iphigenia in Aulis' Choragos, with her Chorus composed of Olivia Akers, Erica Heiselman, Karen Riffey, Liz Sager, Julia Sears, and Wiz Woolley. And with frequent Genesius Guild actor Mischa Hooker serving as Canfield's assistant director, additional members of the play's creative team include stage manager Liz Sager and choreographer and Chorus assistant Stephanie Burrough.
Genesius Guild's Iphigenia in Aulis will be presented on the Don Wooten Stage in Rock Island's Lincoln Park June 24 through July 2, with performances on Saturdays and Sundays at 7 p.m. Admission is free, though donations are encouraged and appreciated, and more information is available by visiting Genesius.org.
