A Crown in Death: A Dramaturgical Approach to The Trojan Women of Euripides

In the action-packed, visually-oriented market for modern media, some may assume a 2,400-year-old classical play to be slightly past its expiration date, especially if that play features little to no action on stage like in Euripides’ The Trojan Women. However, it is important to remember that literature is lost when the world fails to cherish it, so if a text survives that long, it may be worth another cursory glance. In this case, that glance involved a full dramaturgical study featuring qualitative script analysis of multiple translations of The Trojan Women with related texts to explore context, themes, common literary devices, and more. This research was conducted within a historical and literary analysis framework, including a review of primary and secondary sources on the mythology, history, culture, and impact of ancient Greece. Many classical Greek tragedies tend to take on a spirit of immortalizing the beauty of a bygone era, and The Trojan Women specifically explores compelling themes of courage and honor in the face of fear and hopelessness. Therefore, this production utilized informed externalization adjustments in physicality, vocal quality, style, technique, and more to help communicate the beauty, flaws, and human nature of a story that may not be as foreign as it seems after all.