The Greek tragedy, “The Trojan Women,” considered one of the earliest anti-war plays, is the second production of the spring semester in Act 1 DeSales University Performing Arts’ 2020-2021 season.

The masterpiece by Greek playwright Euripides is being filmed for streaming on Vimeo March 27 and 28.

The play, written in 415 B.C. during the Peloponnesian War, is about the capture of the Aegean island of Melos and subsequent slaughter and subjugation of its people by the Athenians.

“The Trojan Women” was the third tragedy of a trilogy Euripides wrote dealing with the Trojan War.

After the fall of Troy, the Trojan women grapple with how to survive their future as captives of the Greek conquerors. Euripides describes a chilling picture of the aftermath of war and the desperate attempts of the Trojan Queen, Hecuba, to comfort and lead her subjects concerning their fate, which includes concubines and death after the killing of all the men.

The play has been adapted by Anne Lewis, head of the DeSales Division of Performing Arts.

“Euripides’ play is a monumental achievement, and it is just as immediate and profound as when it was first performed in the 5th century B.C.,” says Dennis Razze, Act 1 Artistic Director.

“It deals with the aftermath of a long war, a war that was not so different than our modern wars that have left so many damaged and destroyed lives in their wake,” Razze says.

“These women of Troy give voice to the less heroic side of war as they face an uncertain and frightening future,” says Razze.

Making her Act 1 directorial debut for “The Trojan Women” is DeSales alumnae, Jessica Bedford. In addition to appearing in Act 1 productions such as “The Philadelphia Story,” the 2005 graduate was seen in the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival productions, “Henry IV, Part 1” and “Macbeth,” and was nominated for a Barrymore Award for an Emerging Philadelphia Theatre Artist.

Bedford says it’s important to examine what the play says to a contemporary audience. She feels it will resonate particularly after a difficult year of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

“’The Trojan Women,’ at first glance, seems to be a meditation on war and grief. But closer examination reveals something more impactful,” Bedford says.

“It’s a play about how the victims of the Trojan War recover, how they go on, how they choose to live after surviving tragedy,” says Bedford.

“As we embark on this production after a trying year, it’s my aim that revisiting this story offers connection and a message about how brave and human it is to rebuild and to hope,” Bedford says.

The play is recommended for ages 14 and up.

Hecuba is played by senior Jess Gliot, last seen as Rosalind in Act 1’s fall virtual production of Shakespeare’s “As You Like It.”

The other principals are PJ Moran (Talthybius), Hayley Bonnett (Andromache), Kay Danubio (Cassandra), Megan Castellane (Helen) and Will Pearce (Menelaus).

Elizabeth Junkin leads a Greek chorus of Sydney Abbott, Josie LaTorres, Mikayla Johnson, Megan Dean and Courtney Bulger.

The Greek soldiers are played by Jabari Williams, Iyanu Joshuasville, Kevin Regan and Dominick Esposito.

Sets are by Will Neuert, costumes are by Rebecca R. Callan, lighting design is by DeSales senior RJ Craig, and sound design is by 2010 DeSales graduate Ian P. Carr.

The production was filmed by DeSales’ TV-Film students.

Tickets: www.desales.edu; 610-282-3192. An email the day prior to selected viewing date includes production link, instructions and password

“Curtain Rises” is a column about the theater, stage shows, the actors in them and the directors and artists who make them happen. To request coverage, email Paul Willistein, Focus editor, Lehigh Valley Press: pwillistein@tnonline.com