William Finley (Dionysus), William Shephard (Pentheus), Joan MacIntosh (Agave), Ciel (Priscilla) Smith (Agave), Patrick McDermott (Tiresias), Richard Dia (Cadmus), Remi Barclay (Chorus), Jason Bosseau (Chorus), Samuel Blazer (Chorus), Margaret Ryan (Chorus). Theater production performed at the Performing Garage, New York City, in 1967-1968; Film released on March 22, 1970.
Summary:
Filmed stageplay based on the ancient greek play The Bacchae written by Euripides. This play is performed by members of The Performance Group, an NYC experimental theater group who has made their own personal adaptation of this ancient text. 'Dionysus in 69' is the first performance of The Performance Group that emerged in 1968 from a workshop led by Richard Schechner in November 1967 shortly after he arrived from Tulane University to teach at NYU. 'D69' was the first environmental theater production shown at the Performing Garage, the long-time home of TPG and later, the Wooster Group that emerged in 1980 from TPG. A free-wheeling adaptation and distortion of Euripides' 'The Bacchae', 'D69' is notable for the combination of a number of 'firsts' for the New York theater, including audience participation, man-to-man kissing, and full-frontal nudity of both women and men. The Performing Garage was filled with platforms and towers, the floor covered with carpets. There were no seats which meant that performers and spectators shared the space, sitting on the floor or perched on scaffolds. 'D69' was created during a long period of workshops and rehearsals. The production - like all of Schechner's work that followed - was never finished. Before each performance, Schechner gave extensive notes and made many revisions. Over the 14-month run, the roles were rotated among the cast, including a woman playing the god Dionysus (Joan MacIntosh). The Performance Group used their performances as a means of confronting the psychic, physical, social, and political work of the performer and the spectator. The film was made by De Palma and his colleagues from footage shot during two in June and July, 1968. The film uses two screen images shown simultaneously to give some feel of the totally inclusive environmental theater technique pioneered by Schechner.
OCLC:
(OCoLC)822650118
Locations:
OVUX522 -- University of Iowa Libraries (Iowa City)
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.