Lesser Dionysia

Jingyi Cao, a passionate humanities student at Brooklyn Latin compiled a collection of ancient drama with scenes from three different Greek plays:

1. Medea, a tragedy by Euripides

2. Antigone, a tragedy by Sophocles

3. The Birds, a comedy by Aristophanes

Students split into different groups, read, rehearsed, and even slightly adapted these pieces. They did so in preparation for a performance they were to give in front of the entire audience during the Lesser Dionysia. 

During this Lesser Dionysia, the audience was transported back in time to experience what it would have been like to sit in a theater crowd—to witness the raw emotion of Jason and Medea, to feel the unwavering resolve of Antigone, or to laugh at the humorous banter between Euelpides and Pisthetaerus. At the end, the audience casted their votes for the best production just as the ancient judges of the Great Dionysia had. Jason and Medea won.