397: The Oresteia by the Chesapeake Shakespeare Company

Pigweed, Crowhill, Longinus, and all three wives went to Baltimore to see an adaptation of The Oresteia, which was originally a 3-part play by Aeschylus. In this podcast they reflect on the play and related issues. The play focuses on the web of vengeance within the family of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, starting with Agamemnon's sacrifice of their daughter, Iphigenia, before the battle of Troy. When Agamemnon returns home with Cassandra the prophetess of Apollo as a spoil of war, Clytemnestra invites him back in regal style, but then murders both her husband and his new girlfriend. It then falls on Orestes, their son -- urged on by their daughter Electra -- to avenge the death of his father. But then, who is to avenge Clytemnestra? How far does this go? Where does it end? The play addresses issues of just war, faith, free will and determinism, religious and moral obligations, family relations, and vengeance and justice. The show ends with a discussion of Troy and the alleged historical backdrop to the play.