Displaying items by tag: Roman Emperor Hadrian

I’m a geek, I admit it; I love seeing theatre that’s … well … real.  Like SCANDALOUS BOY – you’ve heard of Roman Emperor Hadrian, yeah? He reigned from 117 to 138 CE (that was even before Diana’s wedding!) and occasioned a slew of building projects,  epitomized by Hadrian’s Wall in Britannia. His reign was relatively peaceful and stable; this, with his continuous endeavors to make the Roman Empire more culturally rich, earned him a place on Machiavelli’s list of ‘Five Good Emperors’. [Not so great – five of 198?]

And you know that homosexual relationships were not unusual in ancient Rome, right? A Roman man (women, not so much) was free to choose sexual partners of either gender so long as he remained the active partner (the top).  In about 123AD Hadrian met Antinous, a young man (probably about 14 y/o) renowned for his beauty. Said beauty, by all the evidence that’s survived two millennia, was indeed … what? Matchless? Transcendent?  Paramount?  Check it out – of the thousands of likenesses, largely wrought in marble, 117 have survived – I’ve chosen some nice example(s) for you, and many more can be found by googling Antinous’ name. The National Museums of Liverpool states Antinous and Hadrian are the most famous homosexual couple in Roman history.  I can’t vouch for that, not having made the acquaintance of every homosexual couple in Roman history (workin’ on it!), but we’ll take their word for it, yeah?

SCANDALOUS BOY was narrated by one of those 117 surviving sculptures: the curtain rises (metaphorically; there’s no curtain at Open Space Arts) on a gorgeous man/boy standing posed artistically and clothed in naught but a dance belt. We’re still taking in this marvelous spectacle when OMG! It comes to life! And begins to tell us his story.

Antinous was a country boy, indulgently raised by an adoring mother, who was grooming him for sale to rich and stable older men. At the age of about 14 he was noticed by none other than the emperor Hadrian, traversing this corner of Greece on one of his habitual pilgrimages through his empire. In SCANDALOUS BOY, Antinous doesn’t recognize Hadrian until one of the retinue assures him that “um… yeah … he really IS the emperor.”  

Antonius’ first sexual encounter with Hadrian was, in a word, disenchanting: the emperor’s style of seduction made “wham-bam-thankyou-ma’am” seem romantic. Afterwards, sore and resentful, Antonius meets Lucius. Lucius tells Antinous that Hadrian’s sexual approach has always been like that, and he turned to new young men as soon as the current boy got ‘too old’. Antinous’ appeal will last no more three years, Lucius assures the ‘new boy’, at which time Hadrian will cast him aside … we clearly hear the ‘too’ at the end of that sentence.

Antinous, however, has no intention of being cast aside, nor of being anally assaulted for whatever period his appeal to the emperor lasts. He begins an intensive campaign to teach his lover the techniques of making love, beginning with kissing. Hadrian actively opposes each innovation, but Antinous perseveres, having a double motive: first, to teach his strait-laced lover how to do it right; and second, to prove Lucius wrong.

We fully appreciate the success of this program only after Antinous’ death, in Hadrian’s immoderate, prolonged, and (worst of all) public displays of grief. Statues of Antinous – thousands! – appeared throughout Hadrian’s Empire. Antinous was deified (he made him a god!), and a new city named Antinopolis was founded near the site of his death.  The emperor died surrounded by dozens of statues of his beloved. Not so grand as the Taj Mahal perhaps, but pretty spectacular, nonetheless.

SCANDALOUS BOY was performed by special authorization of Australian playwright David Atfield. Atfield’s writing often explores historical and emotional themes; he is especially recognized for crafting intimate, character-driven dramas, blending the personal with the political in complex ways. We can be proud that he chose Chicago, and Open Space Arts, for the international premiere of this award-winning play.

Casting was inspired. Jose Alexander Martinez was perfect as Antinous: certainly, purty enough for the part, and obviously comfortable with his nakedness (a flesh-colored dance belt with strategic sequins). But the role demanded far more than a sculpted body and a pretty face, and Martinez delivered.

Marble busts of AntoniuBritish Museum 2011s & Hadrian 

Martinez is a newbie to the Chicago theatre scene, so his excellence was a welcome novelty. But Jordan Gleaves has been in Chicago long enough that his superb performance as Hadrian was no surprise, but no less valued. Antonio Cruz was equally brilliant as Lucius – one was able to see the beautiful youth he had been behind the lonely, covetous man he’d become. Jinyue Yuna Hu brought empathic depth to the role of Sabine, Hadrian’s much-neglected wife. Marcellus’s role was brief, but Emiliano Flores demonstrated its importance.

As always at Open Space Arts I have to begin by praising Set Design. OSA is teensy (25 seats!), which is one of the [many] things I love about it, but between its size and the big honkin’ pipe running floor to ceiling in the center of the stage space, it never ceases to amaze me that anyone can actually design a set! in there. But Dylan Tye Davis does so, ably aided by Lex Newman’s lighting design.

I’m mad at Costume Designer Brett Morgan – was it really necessary to put a dance belt on Antinous?  Though I understand that, in our neighborhood, discarding it could well have incited riots. Sound Designer Santiago Quintana gave the piece a terrific collection of music for Antinous to dance to; and as for Intimacy Coordinator Christa Retka: nice. Very nice. Between them, Director Benjamin Mills and Stage Manager Marz Allswede pulled it all together into a cohesive and marvelous whole.

We’ve established that I’m a full-fledged geek; I love theatre that tells true stories, and the story of Hadrian and Antinous is verified, documented, corroborated and substantiated. Antinous complains that ‘two thousand years of standing around with no clothes on is a long time waiting to tell one’s story’ and I certainly can’t argue with that! – I can only be grateful for his forbearance.

And, just BTW: This production contains depictions of sexual content, nonconsensual acts, and physical violence. Viewer discretion is advised. Translation: Oh yeah, get online right now to buy tickets for this weekend! but please, don’t take the kids.

SCANDALOUS BOY will play weekends at Open Space Arts through June 8.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!  

*Extended through June 28th

*This review is also featured on https://www.theatreinchicago.com/!