BYU cancels U. version of Greek tragedy

The University of Utah's rock-opera version of Euripides' classic Greek tragedy "The Bakkhai" is apparently too much "wine, sex and rock and roll" for the Brigham Young University campus.

The play, which had been scheduled for Monday at 5 p.m. in the de Jong Concert Hall in the Harris Fine Arts Center, was to have been held in connection with the University of Utah's 39th annual Classical Greek Theatre Festival. The BYU performance was canceled just a few hours before it was to have been shown.

The 300-plus students who had purchased tickets for the production were refunded their money and encouraged to see the play in the Red Butte Garden amphitheater, where it will be performed Saturday and Sunday at 9 a.m.

"While we respect the work of our colleagues at the University of Utah and plan to continue to have the annual Greek Festival perform at BYU, 'The Bakkhai' itself presents difficult material, and the approach of this production could be problematic for members of our audience," stated a news release issued by BYU's Department of Theatre and Media Arts.

Department chairman Rodger Sorensen shouldered the blame for the misunderstanding.

"The expectation on our part was that it was going to be a traditional Greek theater interpretation," Sorensen said Tuesday afternoon. "I should have been on top of that and asked more questions."

Sorensen said that after a discussion with U. professor Jim Svendsen, the play's producer, the two reached a mutual decision to cancel the BYU performance.

Larry West, who directed the play for the University of Utah, acknowledged that the staging of the production is unconventional. The production includes a classic rock-and-roll score written by Joe Payne that is performed by local rock musicians.

"It's great fun," West said. "I still think we hold onto the intent of the original version. It's about trying to decide who is God, and in our society, we treat our rock and roll stars like gods."

BYU has hosted a performance of the University of Utah's annual Greek theater since 1982 and plans to continue doing so. The productions are popular with students of various disciplines, from theater to literature.

The Euripides play is on BYU's schedule next year, Sorensen said. "Many have read it, and now they can see it and talk about it." But the U.'s current presentation didn't work for a setting on BYU's campus.

"We felt that there were just some problematic staging things that would be difficult for some of our audience members," Sorensen said.

West said BYU isn't the first audience to have problems with "The Bakkhai."

"This play has been controversial since it was written 2,500 years ago. It deals with sex, violence and wine," he said. "Even the most conservative, the most tame translation can't avoid those issues."

West praised BYU's handling of the issue.

"The BYU folks were nothing but respectful and kind in dealing with this matter. I think the whole way they played it was just top notch," he said.

Although the play was canceled, a related, free lecture given by Svendsen at 4 p.m. in the de Jong Concert Hall was still held, followed by a 25-minute question-and-answer session.

The play is also scheduled in Ogden at Weber State University in the Wildcat Theater, Shepherd Union Building on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.

e-mail: mhaddock@desnews.com