UKIAH >> Beginning Friday, the Mendocino College Theatre Arts Department will present “Eurydice,” an adaptation of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice by Sarah Ruhl, at the college”s Center Theater on the Ukiah campus.
According to director Reid Edelman, “Ruhl has put her own highly-imaginative spin on the classic myth drawn from Ovid”s ”Metamorphoses,” an ancient story which has lent itself to innumerable retellings. This is an enchanting play which will touch people”s hearts.”
In the original myth, on the wedding day of the beautiful Eurydice to the musician Orpheus, tragedy strikes. Eurydice steps into a pit of vipers, dies and is swept away to the underworld of Hades. Orpheus” grief overwhelms him; he travels to the underworld and plays music, which melts the lord of the underworld”s heart. Hades agrees that Orpheus can lead Eurydice back to the world of the living, but with one condition: Orpheus must promise not to look back at Eurydice until they reach the surface. Orpheus, undone by his own doubts, looks back, losing his love forever.
In this production, the musician Orpheus is a moody modern guitarist, and the Lord of The Underworld is a child who grows and shrinks in the spirit of Lewis Carroll”s “Alice in Wonderland.” Ruhl also adds the character of Orpheus” father, as well as the haunting “Nasty Interesting Man.” A “chorus of stones” comments on the action and torments Eurydice in the underworld.
The production features a cast of 12 performers, as well as scenery and costumes created by students in Mendocino College”s theatre, art and costuming classes under the direction of faculty members. A musical score and original dance sequences will also be part of the production.
The play is appropriate for most audiences, though it”s themes of love, death, memory, language and music will be most appreciated by those ages 12 and older.
Performances are scheduled for Friday and 8 at 8 p.m., Nov. 13 at 7:30 p.m., Nov. 14 and 15 at 8 p.m. and Nov. 16 at 2 p.m.
Tickets cost $20 for general admission and $15 for students and seniors; tickets are available at the Mendocino Book Company, at Mendocino College Bookstore and online at www.artsmendocino.org.
The performance on Nov. 13 is a special discount night, with all tickets costing only $10. Audiences are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance.
For information, call 468-3172 or visit www.mendocino.edu/cvpa.
The Center Theater is located at 1000 Hensley Creek Road in Ukiah.
