Electra
Inspired by the play by Sophocles
May 17, 18, 19
"Set in the city of Argos a few years after the Trojan War, the play tells of a bitter struggle for justice by Electra and her brother Orestes for the murder of their father Agamemnon by Clytemnestra and their stepfather Aegisthus. When King Agamemnon returns from the Trojan War, his wife Clytemnestra kills him. Clytemnestra believes the murder was justified, since Agamemnon had sacrificed their daughter Iphigenia before the war. Electra rescued her younger brother Orestes from her mother by sending him [away]. The play begins years later when Orestes has returned as a grown man with a plot for revenge, as well as to claim the throne."
Characters
Electra
Daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra. Sister of Iphigenia and Orestes. When Agamemnon is murdered, Electra mourns and plots revenge against his murderers, her mother Clytemnestra and her lover Aegisthus.
Orestes
Electra's brother, returning from his uncle's home. Upon his return, he plots with Electra to get revenge for their father's murder.
Pylades
Orestes' best friend who returns home with Orestes.
Agamemnon
The father of Electra and Orestes, and the husband of Clytemnestra. He is killed by Clytemnestra upon his return from Troy.
Clytemnestra
The former wife of Agamemnon. While he was away, she entered into a relationship with his cousin, Aegisthus. When Agamemnon returned, she and Aegisthus conspired to murder him.
Aegisthus
Agamemnon's cousin, and Clytemnestra's new husband.
