Read the related story— RAFIKA CHAWISHE Interview — Giving Voice to the Unheard
As we enter La Mama’s dark basement performance space we are advised that the play has already begun. It’s one of the first ways that actress and show creator Rafika Chawishe tells us we are entering our shared story of unending cycles of violence and retribution. She sits motionless—her back to us— and watches the sort of images of wanton destruction that dominate nearly every global news feed in memory.
Chawishe’s memory reaches back— way way back—- to the ancient tragedy of the title and more accurately the consuming pain of Agamemnon’s wife Clytemnestra, who cannot brook her husband’s murder of their daughter. It’s the curse from the gods— this cycle of violence—that is the tale Chawishe as Clytemnestra is telling.
La Mama Production Experiments with Video Enhancing Performance
True to La Mama’s signature brand of experimentation, Agamemnon marries a one-woman live performance with movie snippets of a full cast acting out the bloody power struggles of the Greek tragedy set in a modern corporate feeling newsroom. Chawishe’s Clytemnestra is both on the screen and in the room. On screen we see her bloodied, frantic and dazed. In the room, she is commanding.
In this writer’s view, it is human rights advocate Chawishe’s passion that conveys her point. She is adept at changing roles to become a border guard, a political zealot, and more.
When an immigration officer and Arabic translator interrogate her as an asylum applicant—Chawishe is in the room as the refugee-who-has-lost-it-all. You too might feel that the entire performance— both live and film— is just the wrapping removed to bring us to this heartbreaking moment. Chawishe’s chosen format drives her point home like a live Amnesty International fundraising pitch. Bottom line—-Has Chawishe succeeded in piercing our desensitization to the genocides that now make our everyday? In this writer’s view the answer is yes.
Those who are allergic to experimental formats in performance should skip this show. If you prefer scripts with a traditional story arc and an emotional hook Agamemnon might leave you wanting. Agamemnon is a top pick for human rights advocates and those who seek out more cerebral works that reach for deeper truths about humanity, and bring us along for the journey.
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About the Author: Amy Munice
Amy Munice is Editor-in-Chief and Co-Publisher of Picture This Post. She covers books, dance, film, theater, music, museums and travel. Prior to founding Picture This Post, Amy was a freelance writer and global PR specialist for decades—writing and ghostwriting thousands of articles and promotional communications on a wide range of technical and not-so-technical topics.
