MADC's THE BACCHAE

God of wine in Valletta

The hedonistic god of wine has come home with his cult of female Bakkhai in a contemporary adaptation of Euripides’ The Bacchae, to be performed at the MITP in Valletta from October 21.

MADC is opening its 2011-12 season with David Greig’s adaptation of the Greek play about the god Dionysos and his nemesis Pentheus.

Directed by Toni Attard, this is a vibrant and dynamic production, creatively incorporating drama, music, movement and dark humour. It is theatre that packs a potent spell.

The Bacchae tells how Dionysos, having established his divinity in eastern lands, has come home with his cult of female Bakkhai to clear his mother’s name. The son of Zeus intends to establish the worship which he insists is now his due and is most angered by his homeland’s refusal to acknowledge his divinity.

Pentheus (Philip Leone Ganado) is not pleased that Dionysos is around.

Kurt Castillo, who plays Dionysos, explains how his charismatic presence enraptures the local woman, awakening their own Bacchic spirit. Under his spell, they worship him and take part in great celebrations of dance and wine, performing his sensual rituals with a fierce, animalistic devotion. In doing so, Dionysos unleashes his feminine sexuality on the city, threatening the destruction of social order.

Castillo considers this demanding role to be the highlight of this season as there are many facets and issues to his character. The play explores sexuality – “Am I man or woman?” – power and domination and freedom to express one’s self.

Castillo says that a Greek play is usually wordy, however David Greig’s adaptation is in contemporary English and is easy on the ears.

Pentheus, the young King of Thebes, refuses to even consider the possibility that Bacchic worship has a place in his world. Yet he is desperate to know what happens on the hillside where the BacchE worship their new god. He must gain access to Dionysian sexual mystery, but is afraid of losing himself. Dionysos suggests the best way to see the mysteries would be for Pentheus to dress up as a woman. The prince is worried: “Dress up as a woman? But – I’m a man!”

Eventually his curiosity overcomes his fear, leading to a bloody and terrible finale at the hands of the legendary Bacchae. Pentheus’ mother Agave is also overcome by the Bacchic spirit and participates in this bloody orgy.

Pentheus’ grandfather Kadmos and Teirisias the old blind seer are both in favour of accepting this ‘new’ religion.

Manuel Cauchi, who plays Kadmos, sees Euripides’s story as being relevant to anywhere, anytime and anyhow. In a nutshell, he says “it deals with the battle between the irrational and the ordered, conservatism and liberalism; and how much each one of us allows ourselves to lean one way or the other.”

For Cauchi, Attard’s interpretation of The Bacchae promises to be a spectacle of light, dance, music and high emotion with a strikingly contemporary verve to it. “In the true Dionysian spirit, ‘no limits’ are the keywords. After all Dionysos is the god of theatre.”

The cast of The Bacchae also includes Paul Portelli as Teirisias, Pia Zammit as Agave, Philip Leone Ganado as Pentheus.

The Bakkhai, an integral feature of this Greek tragedy are Laura Best, Coryse Borg, Nicola Abela Garrett, Maria Pia Meli, Veronica Stivala and Marta Vella.

Original music is composed and played by Alexander Vella Gregory, choreography is by Sandra Mifsud, set design is by Romualdo Moretti and costume design is by Giuseppe Agulli and Martino Nociforo.
Booking for The Bacchae can be made online at www.madc.biz or by calling 2144 7213.

This article appeared in The Sunday Times of Malta on October 2.