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Marlee Geyser Liora Brosh ENGL 1101 March 8 2025 Medea Play Analysis The National Theatre production of Medea is an unsettling interpretation of the original play. Medea is transformed from a heartbroken woman into someone completely blinded by revenge. The use of lighting, sound, and costume displays her psychological deterioration. The play follows Medea’s internal conflict, a struggle between maternal instinct and vengeance. Throughout the story, she uses her ancestors as inspiration for strength. As the story unfolds, we witness a woman who has experienced such betrayal that it leads to her rage consuming her and ultimately stripping her of everything. Medea is established from the beginning as an outsider. She wasn't born in this city, and she lost her brother and father. She has no family to call for help, so when she loses her husband, she is truly alone and has nowhere to turn. She wears a dull, raggedy tank top and loose brown pants at the start of the play, appearing disheveled, defeated, and humiliated by Jason, her husband who has just left her for a princess. She is the daughter of King Creon. Her eyes look tired, her hair unwashed, her feet bare. In contrast, Jason's outfit projects wealth and success, giving the impression that he is moving on just fine. He wears a nice suit and tie, his shoes shined and his hair trimmed. When King Creon casts Medea out of the city, treating her with cruelty, she begs him for one extra day to make arrangements for her travel. He reluctantly
agrees. What he doesn't know is that Medea only wants one day so that she can carry out her revenge. Jason offers to help Medea, claiming that he is only marrying the princess so that Medea, Jason, and their kids can have financial security. She refuses; she wants nothing to do with his new bride or his help. Instead, she starts working up her own plan for revenge, and she prays to her ancestors for courage. Medea’s state of mind is further emphasized through lighting. At crucial, dramatic moments, such as when she asks her ancestors for help, a bright white spotlight shines on her, creating contrast and shadows on her face and clothing, representing the weight of her suffering. At this point, one of Medea’s old friends, who happens to be the King of Athens, shows up. He was visiting the city to consult the oracle about why he and his wife have not yet been blessed with children. Medea’s energy lightens when she sees him; she appears cheered up and comforted by his presence. Then she has an idea. She asks if he will take her and her children into his city in exchange for bearing his children. He accepts this offer. She makes him promise that he will never abandon her no matter what, hinting to the audience that she is planning something terrible. When she secures this promise of sanctuary from her old friend, the dim, warm lighting surrounding the ancestors suggests an uncertain future, offering a feeling of dread. The stage becomes increasingly dark as she solidifies her plan for revenge, and the spotlight appears again, casting shadows. She decides the only way to truly destroy Jason is to kill her own children, and she begins to formulate the plan. The wedding scene, where Jason’s new bride dances with him, brings warm and cool light. A purple/blue light shines from the back, while the bride and groom at the front are under
wedding ceremony. The man tells Medea to run, but her revenge is not yet complete. A fog- covered forest looms in the background, illuminated by a harsh white light. Medea guides her sons offstage and kills them, their screams echoing. When Jason comes onstage and discovers the horror, his heartbreak is unimaginable, and he collapses in anguish. He hardly knows how to express his grief and anger to Medea, and he curses her as she drags the bodies of her sons onto the stage, struggling under their weight, but it’s too late; her revenge is complete. But the feeling of victory is hollow. Medea has descended into madness, her unspeakable vengeance complete. The play ends with her struggling to carry the bodies on her shoulders towards the back of the stage, stepping into the fog in her blood-stained jumpsuit. Medea is a masterful interpretation of a woman’s descent into vengeance and madness. Through lighting, sound, costume, and movement, the production portrays Medea’s internal conflict. The audience is left disturbed, questioning whether Medea has achieved some kind of twisted power or if she has simply been consumed by her wrath. Either way, her transformation is complete.
