Hecuba and Medea up close…
We recently sat down with actor and ensemble member, Leah Filley to discuss all things Medea and The Women of Troy.
Leah joins our cast this year playing two powerhouse roles: Hecuba and Medea. You may remember Leah from our 2019 production of The Women of Troy which toured into theatres around Victoria. She bring a harrowing combination of strength and vulnerability to the roles, and we are very excited to welcome her back to this small, but mighty team of players.
She is also contributing her passion and expertise to our Digital Study Guide for The Women of Troy which is due for release in Term 1, 2023.
CW: What’s your favourite thing about Greek Theatre?
LF: I love the enormity of the themes. I think they’re very universal but they’re also massively dramatic. And I think that’s really fun. You can really dive in when you’re dealing with such heightened emotion.
CW: Do you think these Greek tragedies have a place in a modern classroom, and why?
LF: I do. I think that a lot of the themes are universal and relevant to right now. For example, with The Women of Troy, we’re still dealing with war. It’s still something we see happening all the time and we’re still dealing with people being taken from their homeland or having to leave their homeland and all of those kinds of complexities. So, I actually think it’s really important to keep studying these texts as a way of looking at issues that we’re facing in a modern context.
CW: Any tips for students who may be tackling these difficult texts for the first time?
LF: I think finding a modern comparison can be helpful. The texts can seem a bit outdated and maybe a bit hard to sink your teeth into, but if you find something - a comparison point – then it’s much easier and a bit more relatable.
CW: How do you prepare for challenging roles?
LF: It is a challenge. There are some daunting aspects about these characters, particularly with the kind of hardship that they’re facing. For me it’s about finding the heart of a character. So, finding out what makes them tick and why they are fighting for what they are doing. I think someone like Medea is quite complicated because it’s easy to judge her actions pretty harshly so right now what I’m trying to do is figure out what it is that led her to the situation that she’s in and why she feels like the course of action she’s taking is her only option.
CW: What’s been your favourite thing about working on The Women of Troy study guide?
LF: Nerding out on Greek theatre! I love that you can track all of these stories… that all of the stories intertwine. I love being able to track where a character ends up and find out about other characters that they intersect with. We know the parameters of the world because it sits within this certain section of time. So, you can track it all and get to know all of the characters and I think that’s really fun.
To book a live performance, or learn more about our Digital Study Guides get in touch.
- Complete Works 2022 -