Bringer of Fire

The only stipulation for this project was that it had to be 15-20 minute site-specific scene with no more than seven cast members. The director retained the agency to choose the script or story, along with the location where the performance would take place.

I chose to direct a devised, immersive theatrical experience, reminiscent of the company Punch Drunk, based upon the myth of Prometheus stealing the fire of the gods and delivering it to the humans. 

Aphrodite (Kayla Jou) enters the party from the forest.

Concept

The location took the primary focus of this project. One of my friends' families owned a farm in the country near Waco, Texas. This location had four ideal locations.

These four locations became the building blocks for building the story. I knew I wanted to devise the project, and the rational choice was that it must be a well-known story so the audience had pre-established knowledge of the story.

All these factors together worked for the story of Prometheus. The barn became the forge. The cabin morphed into the palace of Mount Olympus. The gate provided a place where Prometheus could be chained. It also symbolized the place where Mount Olympus meets the Earth and humanity. Prometheus welcomed the humans, gifting them with candles to allude to their future wealth of flame, along with illustrating the belief that Prometheus created humanity (or instilled intelligence and hope into their souls). Finally, the performance took place at 8:00 P.M., the sun setting as the fire departs from Olympus.

(Most pictures were taken during dress rehearsal for lighting purposes)

The audience could follow any cast member they wanted, so each person left with a different story to tell to their friends. Additionally, sometimes the cast members interacted with the audience. Prometheus asked a human to throw an apple into the gods' house to distract them while he stole the fire; Aphrodite put rings on the fingers of two humans, marrying them for the rest of the night; and Prometheus lit the audience's candles at the end, so they were left with the fire as the gods departed. 


Plot Paperwork

This was a rough first draft of the plot. Many moments changed later. Prometheus began the show by welcoming the humans; he was not chained. After the banquet scene, Hephaestus fell in their forge, injuring their leg and screaming, which caused Aphrodite to run to them. Additionally, Athena warns Prometheus about defying Zeuz in the beginning and instead fights Hephaestus after the apple fight.

Plot Chart.pdf

Farm Map

Hand Out:

Bringer of Fire (1).pdf

Script:

While the cast and I created the majority of the dialogue, allowing it to be spontaneous and natural within a guided structure, the performance began with a monologue, delivered by Fate, taken and adapted from Aeschylus' Prometheus: Bound. It ran as follows:


High-minded son of our wise counsellor, goddess Themis, 

against your very will, you will be bound  

with chains of brass which no one can remove 

on this cliff face, far from all mortal men,  

where you will never hear a human voice 

or glimpse a human shape and sun’s hot rays 

will scorch and age your youthful flesh. For you, 

the sparkling stars high in the sky at night  

will hide those rays and offer some relief.  

Then, in the morning, once again the sun  

will melt the frost. This never-ending burden  

of your present agony will wear you down, 

for the one who is to rescue you someday  

is not yet born. This is to be your reward 

for acting as a friend to human beings. 

Though you are a god, you won’t be deterred 

by any fear of angering the gods.  

You’ll give men honours they did not deserve,  

possessions they are not entitled to. 

Because of that, you will remain on guard,  

here on this joyless rock, standing upright 

with your legs straight, and you will never sleep.  

You will often scream in pain and sorrow, 

for Zeus’ heart is pitilessly harsh, 

and everyone whose ruling power  

is new is cruel and ruthless. 


Photos

These were all taken the day before the performance on Thursday, April 29. The actual performance took place at 8:00 P.M. on Friday, April 30.

Athena warns Prometheus to tell Zeus his Fate

Fate tells Zeus of Prometheus' betrayal

The view at the start of the performance on April 30th 

Zeus woos Hera after angering her.\

Prometheus persuades one of the audience members to toss the apple 

Summary

This was by far my favorite project. I am very proud of the final product. The day of the performance, a thunderstorm rolled in. Rain poured down from 7:30-8:10, so the beginning was delayed until then. Blocking had to transform to account for safety. All moments of physicality were moved outside the barn, and all metal props were disbanded in case the lightning came back. Also, due to the rain, a few extra details were left unfinished and the candles refused to light at the end. However, the weather accentuated the plot perfectly, and everyone who came to see it raved about the weather and the sunset, and many people talked to me about how much they enjoyed the performance.

If I could go back, I would spend more time focusing on the dialect and cohering the different aspects of the story. Each choice was intentional, but not each choice read, especially the more modern moments. Many of these moments were cemented early on in the process, and, if I had more time, I would transform them to be more cohesive with the remainder of the story.