MEDEA
Production Concept
The Greek Tale of Madea is a powerful piece that demonstrates what humans are capable of, not only the plays' header Madea, but her husband Jason, and the Kings; leaving us the spectator with a jaw-dropping perspective of the human condition. Themes of love (or lack of), exile, womanhood and revenge speak loudly to me when I read the script, Love lost and love found as Jason leaves Madea for Glauce, daughter of King Creon and as Madea chooses to kill her own children to spite her husband; exile as Madea has been banished from not only her country, Corinth, but also her marriage and home with Jason. Womanhood, in the sense that we hear her pain and the hurt that Euripides purposefully crafted to give Madea the strength to seek revenge once her life is pulled out from under her like a rug.
I believe that a show that has been masterfully written with epic events really lends itself to being produced in a very minimalistic sense. I plan to use the chorus to create most scenery and play out the overlaying theme of womanhood and the woman that Madea is forced to become. Using lighting, fabric, and projections, I plan to create a very timeless and location-less world where the focus can be on the movement/ body work and the Epic Greek tale itself.
The Chorus will be physical representations of Medeas' body, spirit, and mind, they will go through major changes throughout the show exulting wounds, tears, and creating the "Noise" inside Medeas' head. Possibly underscoring scenes with crying or moans when reaching a scene with a climax like at the end of an episode or Denoument.
Just as you see the main character switch throughout the video, each chorus member will have a moment when they are so over-come with the story they are telling that they step into the role of Madea. The way the chorus moves the main character through the scenes, to me, represents the choices we make...either influenced by others, our thoughts, or fate.
This song will not be used in the production but will be used to create the basis of the world and inner feelings of the characters in the show. Afterwards the actors can begin to physicalize the lyric interpretation which would begin to build actor-centered character physicality.
Watching this music video on my own I couldn't help but think of this semi pieced together concept I had for this show. But after seeing it I was inspired! After watching and closely observing how the use of the chorus emphasized and motivated the words, I could begin to picture Medea and her chorus in these roles. The use of repetition in movements creates a sense of routine which is understood and established by the audience as theatrical convention.
Keeping traditional Greek elements as well as playing with a modern setting will be the balance of portraying the tale as it would have been told, but also making it accessible for audiences today (and possibly tomorrow.) I would love to have my chorus in ever changing masks that represent Madeas' current mood, I have a wonderful image in my head of all chorus members coming out one by one at the end of the play in silence with the evolution of the "Madea masks" until she comes out herself, with no mask on in her final "stage" of emotion.
Secondly I have an image which I call "The crowd of a thousand women" used in order to maximize and raise the stakes of a scene. I would have the greek chorus hold a mask in each hand behind their back and slowly present each mask, awakening and giving life to a group of women either backing up Medea or watching as she does something "less than motherly". Slowly a group of ten chorus members becomes an overwhelming group of thirty, all able to move and tilt freely with precise choreography and gone in an instant.
Overall, I believe this creates a point of view that speaks truth to the script and plays with the human condition as we are entering an age where today more than ever we make a choice to show empathy towards others, sympathy towards others, or just observe.
“Don’t expect the theatre to satisfy the habits of its audience, but to change them.””