Directed by Harvey Rovine, “Trojan Women” is a play of anguish, sorrow and the endurance that the human spirit can go through in the face of adversity. After many years, Troy has fallen to the Greeks and now Hecuba, King Priam’s widow, and the other women of the tragic city have to face their future as slaves to those who conquered them. Sadly, they do not know the exact impact that Troy’s fallen walls will have in store for them before they even reach their final destination until they actually suffer through it.The play opens with a silent yet stirring and stunning dialogue between Poseidon, god of the sea, ably portrayed by Leonard Kelly, and Athena, goddess of wisdom and war, played by Emily Rogge, who is also a believable corpse later in the production.
“Trojan Women” takes place in 2015. Erica Imparato, (who plays Hecuba, the lead) as well as the rest of the cast, surprised me and did a performance that was very well deserving of the loud applause it received. Hecuba starts out full of pain and disappointment in Zeus because her husband, the king, was killed and her children either face the same fate or a life time of misery, yet she tries to keep the other women uplifted for a little while until her whole world begins to unfold in front of her face. Her daughters are taken away from her, as well as husbands of the daughters. ony to look forward to a life as the new spouses/slaves of the Greek leaders that conquered their men.
Movement director, Emily Rogge, has done a wonderful job bringing the characters to life through actions and evoking the audience to feel even a little bit of what each character was emitting. I admit at first that I was confused and uncertain if I would ever understand what was going on, but quickly caught on and even if I hadn’t, the set itself was something to look at. The two actors on the stage playing dead before the production even actually began let the viewer know that these actors were serious and all about getting into character and keeping it. With video projections, the makeup, and the realistic city back drop I was surprised that the West Chester theater department could have such a professional outcome since it was the first production I’ve seen them do. The numerous different angles used to help tell the story as well as the individual stories displayed in the projections to show the viewer how their past lives were full of happiness really helped tie the story together especially with the 90 minute allotted time frame.
Tiana Northern can be reached at TN647558@wcupa.edu