Archive of Performances

The King’s College Classics department has always had a large amount of play paraphernalia lying around it – Aristophanic frog heads in a professor’s office, hoplite uniforms in a hidden cupboard, and reams of notes and records, tidied into files in various discreet locations. This chaos begged for order, especially as performance studies is becoming increasingly central to the study of classical literature, so that in addition to its innate dramatic interest, the development of the KCL Greek play can be written into a wider story about the receptions of Greek drama in the modern world. My year as Executive Producer of the play showed me the dedication and passion with which the students threw themselves into this event, and it occurred to me that the best way of compiling and cataloguing this material effectively was to establish an internship. Happily, funds were available, and during the summer of 2007, the two interns, Caroline Fries and Katie Rose have worked creatively on the material, devising a catalogue system, scanning images, having a wonderfully productive meeting with the 1950s alumni, and, finally, writing text. It has been an exciting experience for all involved, and we hope you enjoy the results.
 
A physical archive is housed in the department containing posters, programmes, notes, audio/video recordings, and other artefacts (a catalogue of the archive can be downloaded from this site). This website showcases the programmes and posters (if available) from every performance since 1953.
 
Dr. Frieda Klotz
August 2006
 
Any queries can be directed to:
 
greekplay@kcl.ac.uk
 
Information on plays in the different decades can be accessed via the links on the left.