Prometheus Unbound: Re-Imagining Theatrical Protest and Socio-Political Commentary of Yesterday and Today
John Paul Staszel and Rob Connick
Abstract
Prometheus Bound, the Greek tragedy by Aeschylus, captures the essence of tyranny and rebellion. While this foundational text coalesces around feuding gods and emerging powers vying for control and status in a new universe, the core themes of the play speak to issues of humanity and oppression that transcend time. Prometheus Bound is more than a story of a titan being punished by Zeus for stealing fire from the gods and delivering it to man as a resource in their development of knowledge. The play symbolizes a figure that stands up for unheard voices, and pushes back against tyranny and injustice, providing a theatrical symbol of protest that embodies social and political issues that span history and cultural conflicts. Prometheus, as a modern symbol, serves as an active reminder that one must not accept intolerance toward equality and choices, and calls on the will of others to exemplify his example and push back against tyranny and injustice. Classical texts such as Prometheus provide a vehicle for revisionary concepts that encourage continued theatrical dialogue toward today’s existing concerns.
The following analysis offers both a critical and subjective memory of two different productions of the same adaption of Prometheus Bound. The first analysis examines the original 2010 production of the adaptation titled Prometheus Re-Imagined, on the campus of Bowling Green State University (BGSU), and the ways the production developed its social-political portrayal through intense physical staging practices. The second analysis examines a redeveloping of Prometheus Re-Imagined in 2012 on the campus of Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. While each production had similar goals with distinctly different sets of circumstances and resources, the results provided two powerfully unique portrayals of tyranny and protest.
Prometheus Bound, the Greek tragedy by Aeschylus, captures the essence of tyranny and rebellion. While this foundational text coalesces around feuding gods and emerging powers vying for control and status in a new universe, the core themes of the play speak to issues of humanity and oppression that transcend time. Prometheus Bound is more than a story of a titan being punished by Zeus for stealing fire from the gods and delivering it to man as a resource in their development of knowledge. The play symbolizes a figure that stands up for unheard voices, and pushes back against tyranny and injustice, providing a theatrical symbol of protest that embodies social and political issues that span history and cultural conflicts. Prometheus, as a modern symbol, serves as an active reminder that one must not accept intolerance toward equality and choices, and calls on the will of others to exemplify his example and push back against tyranny and injustice. Classical texts such as Prometheus provide a vehicle for revisionary concepts that encourage continued theatrical dialogue toward today’s existing concerns.
The following analysis offers both a critical and subjective memory of two different productions of the same adaption of Prometheus Bound. The first analysis examines the original 2010 production of the adaptation titled Prometheus Re-Imagined, on the campus of Bowling Green State University (BGSU), and the ways the production developed its social-political portrayal through intense physical staging practices. The second analysis examines a redeveloping of Prometheus Re-Imagined in 2012 on the campus of Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. While each production had similar goals with distinctly different sets of circumstances and resources, the results provided two powerfully unique portrayals of tyranny and protest.
| etudesjan2018connickstaszel.pdf |
