GOTH Live Performance Event

On the 12th October, GOTH ran an exciting Live Performance Event featuring work by two theatre companies.

The event, held in the OU library seminar room ran from 2.30-5pm, showcased work from Theatre of the Gentle Furies followed by performances by Exchange Theatre. To set the scene, Dr. Christine Plastow, (Co-Artistic Director of The Gentle Furies and lecturer in Classics at the OU), presented a brief overview of GOTH and introduced the range of work explored by this newly-renamed theatre company (formerly known as By Jove). The performance included new writing by SJ Brady and Wendy Haines, starring SJ Brady, Sinead Costelloe and Malinda Smith. These scenes involved the lugubrious ‘bog bodies’ that inspired a lively discussion on roots, ecology, motherhood, grief, and why we tell and retell the stories/ myths we tell. The other scene continued the theme of motherhood, exploring the myth of the Celtic goddess Macha and her relationships to human beings, birds, and the earth itself.

The second part of the afternoon was devoted to French theatre (performed in translation). We were delighted to welcome David Furlong, artistic director of Exchange Theatre (and an actor and translator) and performer and translator Rosie Hilal. After a brief introduction on seventeenth-century theatre (and specifically Molière and Racine) by Dr. Emilia Wilton-Godberfforde, (lecturer in French at the OU), both performers introduced their work and showcased three scenes from Becoming Berenice (a new translation of Bérénice by Rosie Hilal). In their analysis, the actors underscored themes of colonialism, gender, and otherness (with Bérénice the ‘foreign’ queen). The discussion also led to exploring the difficulty of rendering the play into English and Rosie’s motivation for bringing this play to new audiences. Moving on to Molière, the performers then introduced David Furlong’s adaptation of The Misanthrope with two scenes from this curious comedy. David and Rosie underlined how they saw their mission of translation to be a political act (since both are immigrants with families of immigrant backgrounds). Having both experience of being othered, even within their own languages and communities, they offered a nuanced perspective of the importance of rewriting and reframing the ‘classical canon’.

This event was a powerful reminder of how much can be gained from writers, theatre practitioners and academics coming together to explore the works that fascinate, entertain and trouble us. We look forward to further collaborations and creative ventures. A big thank you to all our performers and attendees!