Roman Architecture

This video shows Professor Kleiner's introduction to her Roman architecture unit. She gives a great overview of what some of the ancient buildings of the time. I felt this would be helpful for getting ideas on how to build the set pieces. The script calls for a smaller temple of Venus, which has an alter in front. As well as a cottage in which the character Daemones lives. These two buildings are in the background of the set.

            However, both of these buildings are the entrances and exits of many of the actors. Therefore they need to be built so that the actors may enter and exit in believable ways. There is also a shore that is called for to be another place of entrace and exit. This will need to be thought of in the planning process. This video will hopefully help give an idea of how the buildings could look or be built.

Venus the Goddess of Love

The Goddess Venus is probably one of the most well known mythical beings of all time. She is known as the Goddess of love and fertility. The story of how Venus was born is that she was born out of the sea. This directly correlates with how this play begins; with the cast of characters washing up on shore from the sea. The start of Venus had her as a Goddess for agricultural fertility in Rome. However, as more was learned about ancient Greek history, Romans, “increasingly identified Venus with that goddess" (myths encyclopedia) and therefore became more about love as well. The ancient people of Rome created many temples to worship her in. As Venus became more about love more of the temples appeared.

Romans used the temples of Venus to pray for matters that concerned love, fertility and beauty. All of these things directly relate to what the main point of the play is. A couple falls in love and the women take sanctuary in a temple of Venus. It is not surprising that a play from Roman time would include multiple Gods in it.
Venus was such a prominite figure in ancient times she was used in other plays as well. One source describes Venus as such in the play, "But though their strains charmed the hearts of the spectators with their sweetnewss, Venus was sweeter far; and she began to move gently and to advance with slow and lingering step and body gently balanced to and fro and softly bowing head, and with delicate gestures she kept time to to the soft sound of the flutes..."(Apuleius, pp.36). This quote I felt showed how the character Venus was portrayed on stage back in ancient times and I feel that it shows a lot about why Venus was in The Ropes and just how prominent she was.

One of the most well known paintings of Venus. The Birth of Venus, painted by Sandro Botticelli.

Sources:

"Venus" Myth Encyclopedia. http://www.mythencyclopedia.com/Tr-Wa/Venus.html 31 October 2010

"Temples" Roman Temples. http://www.castles.me.uk/roman-temples.htm 31 October 2010

"A Pantomime Production" from The Metamorphoses, Apuleius (b. Ca. 124). A Source Book in Theatrical History: Twenty-Five Centuries of Stage History in more than 300 Basic Documents and Other Primary Material, A.M. Nagler. Dover Publications Inc. 1952. 31 October 2010

Who is Arcturus?

The entire play kicks off with a monologue by Arcturus. Who's Arcturus? Why is he starting off this play? First of all Arcturus is the brightest star in the constellation Bootes. It is the fourth brightest star overall. In this play, The Ropes, Arcturus states that he is a constellation by night but walks around with mortals during the day. He states that he is there to make things right in the world. To return what is lost, to free those who are innocent and to curse those who do evil. And to do all of these things Arcturus must create a storm that causes a shipwreck at just the right place.
Arcturus, works for his master Jove, and there for helps maintain the good in the world. The bigger picture of this constellation is that it forms a shepherd, which in the world of the play makes sense. Arcturus is making sure that the world stays good for Jove and his time on Earth is spent watching over the people, like a shepherd over his sheep. In the time of Greece and Rome, Gods and Goddesses were something of importance. So it makes sense for the prologue to be said by a God.
Source:
"Arcturus." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2010. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 31 Oct 2010 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/33255/Arcturus>.

Getting to Know "The Rope"

The Rope, also known as, The Rudens, was written by Plautus roughly to be thought written around 211 BC. The play is a comedy that Plautus adapted based on a Greek Comedy by Diphilus. The Rope is known as one of Plautus's most famous plays. The play is similar to that of Shakespeare's The Tempest, in that some of the cast of characters has been shipwrecked on the African coast near Cyrene to be reunited with those from their past.

The play's action consists of plot twists, mistaken identity, and blossoming romance. The underlying theme kicks off right at the beginning of the play that good will conquer and those that are evil in life will be punished. The prologue is said by the god, Arcturus who looks to punish Labrax and states that he will cause the storm that kicks off the entire play. Labrax is a pimp that has some of his women with him on the ship. The women are trying very hard to get away from him and seek refuge in a nearby temple of Venus. The play continues on with some fallling in love, a reunion of a long lost father and daughter, and the freeing of the women. So in the end, like all comedies there is a happy ending that consists of love and freedom. 

Sources:

"Rudens"  The Concise Oxford Companion to Classical Literature. Ed. M.C. Howatson and Ian Chilvers. Oxford University Press, 1996. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press.  Central Washington University.  31 October 2010  http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t9.e2542

"The Rope" The Complete Roman Drama: All the Extant Comedies of Plautus and Terence, and The Tragedies of Seneca, in a Variety of Translations, Vol 1. George E. Duckworth Associate Professor of Classics, Princeton University. Random House, 1967. 31 October 2010

Plautus's Life as a Playwright

Titus Maccius Plautus, more commonly known as Plautus, lived between c. 205 and 184 BC. Plautus was a Roman playwright who wrote in the style of Greek New Comedy. Many have figured out that almost all of his plays were adaptations of other Greek writers. Such writers as Menander and Diphilus. He would take their plays, rewrite them, and make them funnier to his new audience. Sometimes changing characters names, taking out breaks in the action, adding in jokes or getting rid of some of the original Greek music.

Of all of his writings there are 21 that are known to be his today.

It is known that "plays by Plautus are the earliest Latin works to have survived complete"(Oxford Reference Online; Plautus). The Rope is one of Plautus's best plays because of the plot, characters and great action during the show.

Sources Used:

"Plautus"  Oxford Dictionary of the Classical World. Ed. John Roberts. Oxford University Press, 2007. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press.  Central Washington University.  31 October 2010  http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t180.e1746

"Rudens"  The Concise Oxford Companion to Classical Literature. Ed. M.C. Howatson and Ian Chilvers. Oxford University Press, 1996. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press.  Central Washington University.  31 October 2010  http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t9.e2542