Welcome Aboard the Mighty Argo!

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“Sing in us, Muse, the story of Jason and his Argonauts, how he was sent away on the first voyage of the world to bring back the Golden Fleece.” (Act 1, Scene 1)
Hello! Welcome to the 4th wall dramaturgy page dedicated to the spring 2017 mainstage BYU play, Argonautika by Mary Zimmerman.

This production is set to perform June 2 through June 17, 2017 in the Pardoe Theatre in the Harris Fine Arts Center (HFAC) on campus.
We are thrilled to be giving you a backstage pass into the creation of this epic play, which will feature Greek warriors, gods and goddesses, monsters, clashing rocks, dragons, giants, golden fleeces, missing shoes, and much more!
In preparation for seeing this show, we have provided a synopsis for you below. This 2-hour play has many different scenes, along with 16 actors often portraying multiple characters. Throughout the next few months, this blog will assist you with the plot, character relationships, and scene breakdowns. It will also provide more information on Greek mythology, the playwright, and our production. There will be:

director and actor interviews
rehearsal photos
map of the Argonaut voyage
games and fun facts
information about the interactive lobby display
a list of books you can check out to learn more about Greek mythology
constellation and zodiac significance to the characters
highlights of the technical elements such as set, costumes, and props
videos about Zimmerman and perhaps even our cast!

So what IS Argonautika, anyway?

It is a famous Greek myth. Myths are fictional stories that date back thousands of years. They have been passed down through oral tradition and textual translation. The myth of Jason and the Argonauts first appeared in an epic poem called “Argonautica”, written by Apollonius of Rhodes during the third century B.C. Mary Zimmerman’s play is one of numerous interpretations of the tale.

Plot Synopsis of the Play Jason travels to Iolcos, Greece to claim the throne from his uncle, King Pelias, who is celebrating his birthday. Hera (queen of the gods), disguised as an old woman, asks Jason to carry her across the river. In the crossing, he loses a sandal. Hera and Athena (goddess of wisdom and war) bless Jason on his quest to restore the throne. Meanwhile, King Pelias has dreamt that a man with one bare foot will come to kill him. Recognizing it as a prophecy, King Pelias is afraid when the one-sandaled man arrives. Although King Pelias’s servants plot to kill Jason, King Pelias instead decides to send him on an impossible quest. He tells Jason of the story of the golden fleece and orders him to recover it to prove himself worthy of the crown. Jason gathers a band of heroes for the journey. They all aboard a ship called the Argo and Jason is chosen as the leader of “The Argonauts”. The blind prophet Idmon has a vision that the crew will face many obstacles. Indeed, on their journey, the Argonauts face gods, sea monsters, giants, and clashing rocks.

The Argonauts arrive in Colchis, home of King Aeetes and the fleece, which is guarded by a dragon. Knowing that Jason will be unable to retrieve the fleece alone, Hera and Athena conspire with Aphrodite to have the powerful daughter of the king, Medea, fall in love with Jason. King Aeetes requires several tasks of Jason before he can approach the fleece: he must tame two wild bulls, plough a field with them, and plant dragon’s teeth in the field. The bulls breathe fire and the dragon’s teeth sprout magical warriors. With the help of Medea’s magic, Jason accomplishes the tasks. Medea helps by lulling the dragon to sleep so that Jason can retrieve the golden fleece. Knowing her father’s fury, Jason promises to take Medea away with him and to marry her.

King Aeetes pursues the Argonauts as they sail away with both the fleece and Medea. The giant Argo is overtaken by the Colchian fleet, but Medea again saves the quest by tricking her brother Apsyrtos into meeting her. She sacrifices him and King Aeetes stops his pursuit to retrieve his son. By murdering her brother, Medea has saved her husband and is bound to him forever. However, after returning home, Jason marries another princess. The gods help the Argo return, and Athena and Hera place the heroes in the night sky as constellations.

This synopsis will be in the program. It is compiled from the 2008 Shakespeare Theatre Company First Folio Teacher Curriculum Guide. Click here for access to the full Curriculum Guide to learn even more about the play.

Also, click here to watch a promotional video for the Shakespeare Theatre Company's production of Argonautika and get a sneak peek into the exciting world of the play.

We hope you will enjoy exploring our posts, and that you will venture to see this unforgettable escapade of Jason and his Argonauts! Til we meet again, fellow voyagers!

Haley Flanders, MA (click here for bio) and Katie Jarvis, MA candidate

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[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="376"] Margaret Roper[/caption] Margaret More Roper: Scholar and Daughter by Adam White, dramaturg Thomas More was a family man; he was married twice and had four children with his first wife, Jane Colt. After being married for six years, Jane Colt More died, leaving More with four children: Margaret, Elizabeth, Cecily and John. However, More quickly remarried to the widow Dame Alice Middleton, marrying her within a month of his wife’s death. While many of his friends resisted the rapid nature of the arrangement, More went through with it. Thomas and Alice More would raise the four children Thomas More had with Jane, as well as Alice’s daughter from her previous marriage and a foster daughter. Certainly, More valued his family and the welfare of his children. More also valued the power of education. He insisted that his daughters be educated through rigorous schooling, and this was unusual in 16th-century England, as society at large believed women unfit for scholarly pursuits. Despite cultural and institutional norms, Margaret More, the eldest of the More children (and More’s favorite, some would argue), would grow to become one of the most educated people in all of England, a woman of great scholarly knowledge. Margaret More Roper was tutored at home and became well-known for her studies, particularly for her adeptness in Greek and Latin. Her skill in writing and speaking Latin would impress the clergy of England. This specialty is reflected in a scene in Bolt’s A Man for All Seasons where Margaret and King Henry VIII engage in a bit of Latin language sparring. She would also become the first woman who was not of royal birth to publish a translated book. In October 1524, Roper published an English translation of a book called ‘Precatio dominica’ written by Thomas More’s good friend Erasmus. This book was based on the Lord’s Prayer. Instead of translating the book directly from Latin to English, Roper would use her extensive knowledge of both languages to construct the themes and the meanings Erasmus had written in to the treatise with her own words. [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="291"] Erasmus, Dutch humanist and good friend to Thomas More[/caption] It was Margaret who would visit the imprisoned Thomas More the most often. They were very close, writing letters to one another regularly the duration of their relationship. It was in a letter to Margaret that Thomas More confided, “I do nobody harm, I say none harm, I thinke none harm, but wish everybody good. And if this be not enough to keep a man alive, in good faith I long not to live.” We have good reason to believe that Margaret More Roper very well understood what would be her father’s fate. After Thomas More’s execution, Margaret More Roper and her husband William Roper would continue to carry on his legacy in their own ways. William Roper would write the first biography of Thomas More, a glowing and gracious document that would influence our understanding of More’s personality for hundreds of years to come. Margaret More Roper actually kept her father’s head after his beheading, pickling it to preserve it from decay. While many of us may find that historical tidbit a tad macabre, I would like to believe that Margaret More Roper had deep admiration for her father; perhaps it was out of this feeling she kept his head. Please stay tuned to the 4th Wall Dramaturgy Blog to catch clips of my interview with Mallory Gee, the actress who will portray Margaret More Roper in BYU’s A Man for All Seasons. Bibliography: Abernathy, Susan. "Margaret Roper, Daughter of Sir Thomas More." Early Modern England. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Feb. 2014. Duerden, Richard. "A Man for All Seasons." Telephone interview. 31 Jan. 2014. "Margaret Roper." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 28 Sept. 2013. Web. 02 Oct. 2013. "Sir Thomas More Quotes and Quotations." Sir Thomas More Quotes and Quotations. Luminarium. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.

Welcome Aboard the Mighty Argo!

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