This Weekend & Next Tuesday: Tragic Greeks + Cool Music, For Free

Y’know, I wish intersections like this happened more frequently; there’ve been a few collisions of the art, theater, and music worlds in town lately (like the production of Speeding Motorcycle a while back that included glam-y rockers Roky Moon & Bolt as the band and local musician Matt Brownlie in the lead role), but I want more, dammit.

Especially if they’re as cool as the production of Electra that’s being put on over at U of H this weekend is sounding like it’s going to be. The play’s part of UH’s Center for Creative Work‘s annual Dionysia event, which is apparently something of an attempt to pay homage to the festival times of ancient Greece, and it sounds pretty compelling, at least to me.

Granted, it’s been a very long time since I read or saw any Sophocles — I somehow managed to avoid most of the Greek & Latin stuff in school, only catching bits & pieces here and there beyond what I read on my own, like the Odyssey — but the play’s a classic. In typical Greek fashion, there’s murder, sneaky plotting, adultery, confused identities, and revenge, which is pretty much all you need for a good play, really.

For this production, however, the music’s a bit special. There’s a brand-new score to the piece, written by composer Elliot Cole, who’s been working with local experimental-music scene folk Lance Higdon (Tambersauro/Golden Cities/Wall With One Side/etc.) and Michelle Yom (Doggebi). During the play, Cole will be playing the harmonium, while Higdon does percussion and attacks his laptop and Yom plays recorder, flute, and harp (although presumably not all at once).

The play starts today, Friday, March 26th, at 8PMover at the Wortham Theater on the UH campus (not to be confused with Wortham Center, which is in downtown), and it’ll run there through Sunday, March 28th.

There’s a followup performance, to boot, this next Tuesday, March 30th, up on the rooftop/parking garage above Khon’s Bar in the Mekong Shopping Center; that one’s at 7PM, and it’s supposedly “kid-friendly.” Um, as “kid-friendly” as a play about how your mom murdered your dad and your sister had to send you away so she didn’t kill you, too, can be, I’m guessing. Your mileage may vary…

Anyway, the whole shebang is free, which is always extra-super-enticing, although the folks running the show are asking that people who want to come please RSVP beforehand (call the Worth Theater box office at 713-743-2929 for that), I’m assuming so they can have some idea of how full the house’ll be.

There it is, y’all… Go watch some grim Greek tragedy unfold to what’s bound to be intense, intriguing music.