MSU Shackouls Honors College to celebrate Greek, Roman culture with Classical Week
Contact: Anna Owens
STARKVILLE, Miss.âMississippi ´ķĪķAPPâs Judy and Bobby Shackouls Honors College continues its annual observance of Classical Week this month, featuring a theatrical performance of Plautusâ âThe Braggart Soldier,â which examines the concept of unexpected heroes who accomplish extraordinary feats.
A comedy first performed in Rome in 206 B.C., âThe Braggart Soldierâ is considered the greatest of Plautusâ 21 surviving works. The play follows Pleusicles, a young Athenian man who must journey to Ephesus to reclaim both his slave and his companion after they are abducted by Pyrgopolynices, an egotistical military officer and prolific liar. The plotâs true hero is an unexpected character.
Performances take place Sept. 24 and 25 at 6 p.m. in the Griffis Hall Courtyard at Zacharias Village. Donna Clevinger, professor of communication and honors college senior fellow, is director. All Shackouls Honors College students, the actors represent a variety of MSU majors.
The play will proceed rain or shine but will move to the first-floor common area of Griffis Hall in the event of inclement weather. Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs or blankets for seating, as well as a picnic. Performances are free to all and open to the public.
âThereâs nothing like an evening here at Mississippi ´ķĪķAPP, to sit on the grass in Zacharias Village and watch a play and share that communal experience together,â said Clevinger, adding âWe look to the past to find out who we are today.â
Additional events include an exhibit of Greek and Roman artifacts and a guest lecture about how history can inspire todayâs heroes as part of the honors collegeâs âThe Oratorsâ speaking series.
âTo Hellenistic and Back,â an exhibition of Greek and Roman artifacts curated by the Department of Art Galleries and the Lois Dowdle Cobb Museum of Archaeology, includes 16 pieces that tie into the theatrical performance regarding setting, clothing and props.
Free and open to all, the exhibit is located in the Brock Gallery on the main floor of Old Main Academic Center through Oct. 9. Gallery hours are 7 a.m. to 11:45 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 7 a.m. to 7:45 p.m. on Fridays. All pieces are part of the Lois Dowdle Cobb Museumâs permanent collection.
âI hope the exhibition will inspire a deeper understanding of the time and students will question the meaning of objects they previously only researched,â said Lori Neuenfeldt, MSU art instructor and director of galleries.
Hellenism refers to the Roman Republicâs Mediterranean conquests and Greek colonization between 323 and 31 B.C. In the art world, extensive landscapes became popular subjects, fresco painting originated as a technique, and sculptures depicted average people in the midst of everyday activities, according to Neuenfeldt.
Philip Freeman, a professor of humanities and the Fletcher Jones Chair of Western Culture at Pepperdine Universityâs Seaver College, will discuss âLooking to the PastâTo Find Todayâs Heroes.â Free and open to all, Freemanâs lecture takes place Sept. 26 at 2 p.m. in Griffis Hallâs Forum Room, with a reception to follow.
Freeman also is a theatrical consultant for âThe Braggart Soldier,â and he adapted the script translations specifically for the Classical Week performances.
For more information about âThe Braggart Soldierâ or âThe Oratorsâ lecture series, contact Clevinger at 662-325-2522 or dclevinger@honors.msstate.edu. For more about âTo Hellenistic and Back,â contact Neuenfeldt at 662-325-2970 or lneuenfeldt@caad.msstate.edu.
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