A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

Medea (Ludlam)

Short Play, Comedy  /  3w, 2m

Charles Ludlam
From Euripides' drama

"A succinct deconstruction, not a broad parody, and its laughter derives less from mocking Greek tragedy than from ruthlessly and insightfully exposing its conventions... Medea is at its best when rudely pointing up the continuity between Euripides a…

  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    3w, 2m
  • SubGenre
    Subgenre
    Farce, Parody / Spoof

Details

Summary
From the imagination of Charles Ludlam and the Ridiculous Theatrical Company comes a comic adaptation of the timeless tragedy by Euripides reinterpreted in the inimitable style of this classically farcical company.

Plus Chorus

  • Cautions
    • Mild Adult Themes

Media

REVIEWS

"A succinct deconstruction, not a broad parody, and its laughter derives less from mocking Greek tragedy than from ruthlessly and insightfully exposing its conventions... Medea is at its best when rudely pointing up the continuity between Euripides and Hollywood melodramatists of the 1930's and 1940's." - The New York Times

"Delightfully zany... Homage is paid to the classical tragedy without compromising the integrity of Ludlam's high camp vision." - Downtown

"Ludlam has converted the play into a boisterous tragicomedy that's over in less than an hour, yet retains not only the basic plot about a murderous mother, but such key Euripidean concerns as the fragility of democracy, the whimsy of the gods, and Medea's status as a stranger in a strange land... Ridiculous? You bet. And also a near perfect example of its enduringly mischievous breed. Ludlam lives." - Christian Science Monitor

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: $110 per performance

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Authors

Charles Ludlam

Charles Ludlam (1943-1987) grew up in Queens, New York, just a few subway stops from Greenwich Village, and the heart of Gay America. At 24, he founded the Ridiculous Theatrical Company, where he wrote, directed and performed in almost every production for the next two decade ...
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Euripides

Euripides (c. 480 – c. 406 BC) was a tragedian of classical Athens. Along with Aeschylus and Sophocles, he is one of the three ancient Greek tragedians whose full plays have survived. Of the more than 90 plays attributed to Euripides, 18 are extant in full: Alcestis, Medea, ...
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