Windham Theatre Guild Presents LYSISTRATA This Month

The classic comedy Lysistrata comes to life at the Windham Theatre Guild as the final Main Stage show of the 2023-2024 season, opening Friday, June 7th at the Burton Leavitt Theatre. Originally written by Aristophanes in the Golden Age of Greek Drama, this new adaptation, written and directed by Ava R. Molnar, pairs modern sensibilities with crude humor to make an engaging and entertaining production. 

Raised in the rubble of endless war, Lysistrata decides it's time to make a change. She gathers her friends, the crass Calonice and the magnetic Myrrhine, to join her in an effort to stop the war by organizing a sex strike. But Lysistrata knows that friends talking about problems won't solve anything, so she invites allies from enemy states, Lampito and Ismenia, to join the cause and enlists the elders of Athens, Stratyllis and Rhodippe, to seize the Acropolis. A persnickety Magistrate challenges Lysistrata at every turn while Philostratus and Pisander  try to beat the women at their own game. When Myrrhine's husband Cinesias emerges as a leader among the men, Lysistrata sees an opportunity to win the battle with certainty, but Myrrhine quickly questions her role in the strike and Lysistrata's tactics. Tension between the friends threatens to dismantle the strike as a Spartan envoy approaches. Will Lysistrata be successful in her bid for peace? Or will the Magistrate manipulate his way to success? And what of the floor show that Philostratus and Pisander put on? With an ensemble that breaks the bounds of the stage and a new seating arrangement for WTG, this production will be sure to leave you living, laughing and loving. 

This adaptation was first read at the Windham Theatre Guild in March and since then Ava has taken feedback and input from the community to shape the script. She began drafting the script in October of 2023 by asking her peers to discuss their experiences with the feminine and masculine aspects of their lives, “What it means to be a woman or a man has changed significantly (in some ways at least) since 4ll B.C.E. so I wanted to make sure the characters reflected a more modern understanding of femininity and masculinity” As an educator Ava also teaches about Lysistrata in her History of Theatre class and has been able to involve her students in shaping the piece as well, “When we learn about different political theatre movements I brought us back to this text and they [the students] had so many ideas about how things like Theatre of Cruelty, Theatre of the Absurd, and Theatre of the Oppressed could connect to this piece. I brought some of the concepts to the cast and we had a blast finding ways to integrate them into the performance.” 

Tickets

Lysistrata will be performed at the Burton Leavitt Theatre, 779 Main St. Willimantic, on June 7th, 8th, 9th, 13th, 14th, 15th, and 16th, with evening shows at 7:30 pm and Sunday matinees at 2:00 pm. Viewer discretion is advised due to mature content and immature jokes. Tickets can be purchased online at windhamtheatreguild.org or reserved by calling 860-423-2245. Adult tickets are $20, Students and Seniors are $17, UCONN, ECSU, QVCC with student ID are $15 and Children under 12 are $13.

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