The award winning theatrical wonder "Metamorphoses" explores Greek myths on stage at IU
When playwright Mary Zimmerman's award-winning Metamorphoses opens at the Indiana University Bloomington Wells-Metz Theatre on Feb. 1, some of Ovid's greatest myths will be transformed for the stage.
Zimmerman's gifts for storytelling and theatricality shine in this deeply affective retelling of, among others, Midas, Eros and Psyche, Narcissus, and Phaeton and his therapist. Nominated for the 2002 Tony Award, Metamorphoses won the 2002 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play.
Metamorphoses is deeply moving and humorous, weaving familiar Greek mythology into a stunning exploration of love, loss, memory, imagination and the power to adapt and endure. Set in and around a large pool of water onstage, Metamorphoses juxtaposes the ancient and the contemporary in both language and image to reflect the variety and persistence of narrative in the face of inevitable change.
John Maness, third-year Master of Fine Art student in the IU Department of Theatre and Drama, is directing Metamorphoses for his thesis production. Although the play is an adaptation of various Ovid myths -- some better known than others -- Maness believes that it will still resonate with all audiences.
"The adaptation of the play is a very good one," Maness said. "Playwright Mary Zimmerman has a highly developed eye for the theatrical and crafts her plays accordingly. What is really interesting with Metamorphoses is that she chooses to include some rather unfamiliar myths (like the tale of Myrrah and Cinyras) beside the ones that we know quite well (such as the story of Midas). Yet whatever the specific myths, their resonance within the hearts of our collective psyches cannot be denied."
Zimmerman is the recipient of a 1998 MacArthur "genius" Fellowship, the 2002 Tony Award, Obie Award, and Drama Desk award for Best Director -- all for Metamorphoses -- and more than 20 Joseph Jefferson Awards. She is a member of the Lookingglass Theatre Company of Chicago, an Artistic Associate of the Goodman and Seattle Repertory Theatres, and Professor of Performance Studies at Northwestern University.
"We think of 'play' as a noun," Zimmerman said. "We forget that it's also a verb. Children play . . . , practicing at life in order to cope and survive later in life. Plays do the same thing. They're teaching us how to cope with situations, like the advent of our death. And we can sit back and observe."
Maness said that even though Metamorphoses is a "mythical" play, it will still translate well for modern audiences because it is "good for the soul." Maness said when most people think of myth, their view of them may range from dusty, irrelevant stories to quaint, fairytales of their youth.
"However, the fact of the matter is that the power of myth reveals the truth in us," Maness said.
And in a play of many themes and images, water and the transformative power of love seem to be the primary themes and images represented on stage. However, Maness said there is an intriguing duality to transformation.
"The curious thing about transformation is that it is double-edged. Nothing can be created without something else being destroyed," Maness said. "The myths reach back to that basic sense of death and rebirth and the cyclical nature of life. Love is but one aspect of that. We tend, as Westerners, to categorize love and hate into two camps, but really they are so linked as to be one. But the creative and destructive powers of love can transform whole worlds."
In the original production, Zimmerman used a swimming pool for a significant function in her set and play. How does a director replace or compensate without the pool in a production and still keep Zimmerman's concepts and themes alive? For Maness, the answer involves the use of lots of silk to simulate the water, indicate change of time and character and underscore the mood of the play.
"Fortunately silk is a remarkably fluid fabric and allows for a lot of opportunities that we wouldn't necessarily be able to accomplish with a large pool as the centerpiece," Maness said. "So it was a tradeoff, but one that I think allowed for us to keep within the bounds of the original intent of the play."
One of the biggest challenges as director was determining the number of people in the cast. Zimmerman cast her original production with five men and five women to split the various roles. Maness said he felt that the ideal number for the production was six men and six women.
"More would make the play unwieldy for me and fewer would not allow us to accomplish as effectively some of the quick, specific imagery that we were after," Maness said. "This meant, of course, that I had to redistribute the character assignments. Mary Zimmerman had the benefit of crafting her play around specific actors. Having a finished text of this narrative nature required me to have a go at it from the opposite end. As you can probably imagine, it took quite a while to find the optimum cast with evenly distributed and satisfying assignments for each member of the ensemble. In spite of the agonizing decisions that I had to make, I ended up with a great cast that really makes the show."
Overcoming obstacles and challenges are part of the directorial process. Since the Metamorphoses is Maness' M.F.A. thesis production, he had a clear vision of what he hopes audiences will take from the production.
"My hope is that by going through the ritual of telling these stories, the audience will experience something unique and profound within themselves," Maness said. "I think that would be the supreme validation of my own developing ideas and theories of what theatre is about."
Metamorphoses will run at the Wells-Metz Theatre in the Lee Norvelle Theatre and Drama Center, 275 N. Jordan, in Bloomington on Feb. 1-2, 5-9. All performances will take place at 7:30 p.m. with an additional 2 p.m. matinee on Feb. 9. Ticket prices are $16 for adults and $13 for students and seniors (discounts Tuesday-Thursday and Saturday matinee only). Student Rush tickets are available on the day of every performance; students with a valid IU I.D. may purchase any available tickets for $10 cash. Group prices are available. For ticket information, call 812-855-1103 and ask for information about Lee Norvelle Theatre and Drama Center tickets. To purchase tickets by phone, call Ticketmaster at 812-333-9955 or visit www.theatre.indiana.edu.
