Imagine Euripedes' immortal play Medea condensed into one act.

Instead of in an ancient amphitheater, it is performed on an opera-house stage and costumed by folks with strong Sword & Sandal sensibilities. Save for the narration at the very beginning, no words are uttered until the very end, when the narrator returns. The verbiage of humanity is replaced by  haunting expressive atmospheric music.

Now imagine the tragic tale of Jason and Medea's final days together (with flashbacks to events long prior) being communicated primarily through movement, specifically ballet.

Odd as it may seem, the unusual combination of images, sound and dance choreography actually work quite powerfully together to produce a truly unique and enjoyable viewing or listening experience.

Filmed in Georgia (where Colchis and the Golden Fleece were actually located), this performance, lasting a little over an hour, is a rare gem indeed.

A big thank you to The Orchestra and Ballet Troupe of the Tbilisi Z. Paliashvili Opera and Ballet State Theater for their mythic creativity in the late 1970's!

And thank you to KULTUR for preserving and sharing this masterpiece of unique creative expression!

Onwards!

Hercules Invictus