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Who Played Messenger in Medea

Messenger is a role in Medea, a play that opened Broadway in 2002.

Immortalized by Euripides, the story of Medea has inspired numerous literary and musical works. Medea, the mythological sorceress and priestess of Hecate, murders her children when her husband, Jason, whom she had assisted in his successful quest for the Golden Fleece, repudiates her because he wishes to marry another woman. Traditional renditions of the story have portrayed Medea as a demonic figure, but Cherubini and his librettist, François-Benoit Hoffmann, while conveying the sheer horror of Medea's actions, bring out the humanity of a woman who is driven to unspeakable crimes by unbearable pain. In the France of 1797, the story of Medea could have easily been interpreted as an allegory of the Revolution who devours her own children. Cherubini's work is a brilliant synthesis of several types of opera: opéra comique, tragédie lyrique, Gluck's operatic style, and the allegorical opera of the French Revolution. In this opera, Cherubini's mastery of harmony, counterpoint, and orchestration -- which often anticipates the orchestral sound of Beethoven -- truly comes to the fore. Cherubini's peerless handling of musical form and drama rewards the listener with an extraordinary operatic experience. Beethoven admired Cherubini above all his contemporaries, and Medea was not only a source of inspiration but a model as well for Fidelio.

7 actors have played Messenger in Medea.

View full cast of Medea

Performer Production Opened
Ralph Roeder Broadway Medea 1920
Al Freeman, Jr. Broadway Medea 1973
Bill E. Noone Broadway Medea 1973
Dan Mullane Broadway Medea 1994
John Woodson Broadway Medea 1994
Chris McKinney Broadway Medea 2002
Derek Hutchinson Broadway Medea 2002

Other Roles in Medea

Role Production Opened
Aegeus Broadway Medea 2002
Child Broadway Medea 2002
Chorus Broadway Medea 2002
Creon Broadway Medea 2002
Jason Broadway Medea 2002
Medea Broadway Medea 2002
Messenger Broadway Medea 2002
Nurse Broadway Medea 2002
Tutor Broadway Medea 2002

“Messenger” Also Appears In

Production Type Year
Come Back, Little Sheba Broadway 2008
The Gospel at Colonus Broadway 1988
Macbeth Broadway 1988
Medea Off-Broadway 1986
Much Ado About Nothing Broadway 1984
Knock Knock Broadway 1976
Antigone Broadway 1971
Mame Broadway 1966
Kiss Me, Kate Off-Broadway 1965
The Threepenny Opera Off-Broadway 1955
Joy to the World Broadway 1948
King Richard III Broadway 1943
Antony and Cleopatra Broadway 1937
Othello Broadway 1935
The Dybbuk Broadway 1926

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