On October 1st, a troupe of St. Olaf players brought us the Roman comedian Plautus’ Aulularia (’Little Pot o’ Gold’) – performed in English, with a bit of Latin thrown in for good measure.  Students from all walks of Gustavus life enjoyed an hour of uproarious situation comedy, musical numbers, slapstick, and crazy coincidences.  Read the following review submitted by Nick Neutkens, beginning Greek student:

Although I understood absolutely none of the Latin, I thoroughly enjoyed the Aulularia play. I was very impressed with how little they had to work with and what they produced with it on stage. It was in fact, a great comedy that produced a lot of laughs as well as some puns including Greek superiority. Latin is a great thing to learn and all, but everyone knows that Greek is far more superior than any other language. The only aspect of the play that did bother me was the character consistency. The characters that seemed to be the most entertaining to me had very few lines and I was hoping to see more of them. Other than that miniscule personal preference, the actors performed very well and their singing was better than expected. Another interesting thought about the play was that four of the actors were actually Physics majors at St. Olaf. That is an interesting way to show that you don’t have to be a Classics major to celebrate or learn the classics. Overall, the play met my expectations and maybe did a little more than that. There is a good chance that I will be present at next year’s performance. To those who were involved with the play, I say “eu ge!”

On Thursday Feb. 26, Professor Patrice Rankine from Purdue University delivered an exciting lecture entitled “Black Athena and Myths of African Diaspora Identity in Latin America and Brazil” on the controversial book Black Athena by Martin Bernal, the impact that it had on classics in America, and the formation of racial identities in Brazil.  Stalwart Gustavians braved the snowstorm to attend the talk, which was co-sponsored by a range of programs and departments across campus.   Watch for a recording of Professor Rankine’s lecture (coming soon!).

Then on March 1st, Professor Thomas Palaima from University of Texas delivered a fascinating lecture “Stories of War from Homer to Jesse Odom and Beyond” for the Phi Beta Kappa Visiting Lecture program.  In his talk he tried to get people to think about what soldiers,
writers, reporters and singers from Homer to the present have been trying to make us see: war as
it is and what war does to us.  He also visited the Roman Art and Archaeology class and the second semester Introductory Greek class.  You can read more about Professor Palaima and his work on war and violence here.

Euripides is perhaps best known as an avant-garde playwright whose plays (Medea, Bacchae, Trojan Women) offer powerful female protagonists, bold new handlings of myth and an interest in psychology. Dr Chong-Gossard (Lecturer at the University of Melbourne) introduced us to a lesser known Euripidean tragedy, his Hypsipyle, a play preserved only in fragments. Chong-Gossard is currently working on the
first major study of the Hypsipyle as a work of drama. His lecture explored the theme of
consolation, demonstrating that the play dramatizes consolatory gestures in an innovative
way and makes a bold statement about forgiveness in the face of human tragedy.

Earlier this September, the Classics Department welcomed back Gustie classics majors, old and new, at the annual Departmental Classics Reception.  Much barbecue, tzatziki, and merriment were had by all!

Missing Matt? Go visit his blog:

http://pancierasinsicily.blogspot.com/

Distinguished judges Will Frieiert, Henry McCarthy, and Steve Reese, who arrived all the way from the St. Olaf College awarded first prize to Seneca’s Medea (Laura Engel, Taylor Beckering, Dan Barthell, and Ricardo Torres). Aristophanes’ Lysistrata and Euripides’ Medea won 2nd and 3rd prize, respectively.

(pics to be posted soon!)