Oakland University To Present LYSISTRATA REMIX A Comedic Battle Of The Sexes

Oakland University's School of Music, Theatre and Dance will present Lysistrata Remix - a comedic battle of the sexes - from Nov. 15 through Dec. 2 in Varner Studio Theatre.

The production puts a new shell on the Greek comedy Lysistrata by Aristophanes. Originally performed in Athens in 411 BCE, Lysistrata tells the story of a woman who makes a vow to withhold sex from her husband, and inspires other women to do the same, until their soldier husbands sign a treaty for peace.

"The play is 2,429 years old and still makes us turn red with laughter and ask questions," said director Karen Sheridan, a professor of theatre at OU. "Lysistrata is Aristophanes' most produced play and is still very popular today."

Sheridan's version explores what happens when the play Lysistrata finds its way into a college dorm room and women of today are called into the piece.

"Reading the play together was just supposed to give the young women a jump on homework, but like all good plays - it draws them in," Sheridan said.

"My version tells the original story - the original play and all its bawdiness is there - with contemporary women's perspective informing the events and weighing in on the need for other methods of dealing with conflict when it 'arises,'" Sheridan said.

For Mannon McIntosh, an acting major who is playing the role of Lysistrata in the OU production, working on the play has been "an absolute blast."

"This show is all about standing up for something you believe in even if it's unpopular and scary, and that could not be more relevant in the world right now," she said. "There is a little bit of Lysistrata in all of us, and I hope we use that little bit to start conversations that need to be started - even if we are alone at first. One person can change the world, or change history, with one idea, and that's what Lysistrata teaches us."

The play features choreography by Gregory Patterson, associate professor and chair of the OU Department of Dance. Sheridan rates the play and production 17+ due to strong language, mature humor, sexual content and comic mischief.

Tickets are $8 for students and $15 for the general public, and can be purchased online at startickets.com.

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