UGA reboots Euripides’ ‘Alcestis’ with new adaptation

The inventiveness of students and faculty in the theatre program strikes again, as they re-imagine a classic and take the stage back to its roots – outdoors – with a new production of Euripides' “Alcestis.” Directed by David Saltz and freely adapted by UGA students Gabrielle Sinclair, Taryn Nicole Spires and Jeannie Thomas, The production runs Oct. 7-9, 12-15 and 17 at 6 p.m. at the Miller Learning Center outdoor amphitheater.

Tickets are $16 or $12 for UGA students and can be purchased online at ugatheatre.com, via phone at 706-542-4400 or in person at the Performing Arts Center or Tate Center box offices.

Through the trickery of the god Apollo, King Admetus is spared the fate of death, but with a catch—someone must take his place. With no one willing to accept the sacrifice, his loyal wife Alcestis answers the call. What follows is a satirical tragicomedy that questions a person’s relationship with life, death and love from a uniquely modern perspective, complete with appearances by the debauched demigod Herakles and the personification of Death itself. Utilizing digital masks and actor-driven technology, this original adaptation aims to breathe new life into Euripides’ irreverent tale.

Performed outdoors, “Alcestis” will give students a taste of how ancient Greeks might have experienced live theatre. Like the ancient Greek actors, performers will even be masked, but with a modern twist. These masks, specially designed by students in UGA’s Digital Media MFA program, incorporate built-in screens, using technology that projects their character’s eyes and allows for actors to control their expression. The digital masks invite the eerie presence of the past year and a half in a pandemic in which so much of a person’s communication has been through their digital selves.

Saltz introduced the concept of the digital masks to his team earlier this spring, and students have been collaborating for the past several months across playwriting, digital media and performance, investigating ways in which modern technology and modern culture might inform our understanding of this ancient play.

Tickets available, so get yours today for a wonderful evening of theatre alfresco, just as it was meant to be.

Image courtesy of UGA Theatre's presentation of “Alcestis”