Euripides' 'Trojan Women'

Oxford Playhouse to Sat 8th May.

The action of Euripides' 'Trojan Women' is sparse, yet crafted beautifully so as to engage the audience through the anguish of its subjects - the Women of Troy. Beginning in the aftermath of Troy's destruction, the Playhouse set is simple yet effective, with burnt trees decorating the back of the stage, fresh graves covering the front. Hecuba, the leader of the chorus sits half buried in one of these graves, her husband dead and she herself about to be taken as a concubine or a slave like her daughters and the other women of troy. It is a smart move employing professional actress Liz Brook in this role for two reasons. Not only does it give the role legitimacy - a young student would not quite cut it aesthetically - the commanding presence Brook brings to this pivotal role gives the production a strong backbone.

For indeed, the role of Hecuba is the backbone of the play. The structure is such that the other players come to her with their parts, each in turn relating their personal experience of devastation; the crazed daughter
Kassandra, the heartbroken daughter-in-law Andromache, the victor Menelaus and the temptress Helen. The benefit of this is its flow - with a steady stream of new characters to the stage, time passes without notice and two hours without interval seems two minutes. However, the disadvantage of the structure is the variation of quality it allows. Ensemble playing in this piece was not a strength, and the chorus lacked the necessary focus to
function as a collective body. This wasn't helped by some interesting but ill placed interludes of techno music and choreography that was littered between scenes.

From here, though, the production can move you to tears, as Elisabeth Gray's superb Andromache says goodbye to her only child. Gray's performance truly is the highlight of the night, and she rivals Brook in her
professionalism and presence on stage. Elsewhere, Oli Henman gives a strong performance as Menelaus, with more than a hint of Russell Crowe about him. Kate Sagovsky (Kassandra) does well with a difficult part - indeed, all solo performances are good, although I'm not sure the stylised portrayal of Poseidon and Athene quite hits the mark in the prologue. Overall though, a strong production with a good cast. On reading the play, I was struck by the melodrama. On watching the production, I was touched by the tragedy. This can only be a good thing. 'Trojan Women' is well worth a look.

Hanna Johnson, 5.5.4