The Suppliants – Aeschylus

“Desmoi” Centre for the Research and Performance of Ancient Greek Drama

First Performance: July 2, 1994, Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus

The particular interest of The Suppliants lies in the function of the chorus as the protagonist of the tragedy, taking up the majority of the work. This element itself convinced many to seek a dating before 490 BC until a papyrus finding set the teaching of the piece as 463 BC, thus overturning a convenient chronological scheme that had been invented for Aeschylus. The Suppliants is the first part of a trilogy on the story of the Danaids. Here, the fifty daughters of Danaus arrive in Argos from Egypt, trying to escape a forced marriage with their cousins, the sons of Egypt, who pursue them. This flight has two consequences that lead to corresponding points of tragic contemplation: one aspect, localised and relatively limited, concerns the king of Argos, who faces a dilemma: to accept the suppliant women, endangering the security of his people, or to reject them, violating divine law. He chooses the first path, which leads him to his death in the second part (The Egyptians) of the trilogy. […]

N. Hourmouziadis, “Theatre: The dramaturges of the classical era, Aeschylus” from History of the Greek Nation, Volume C2 (Classical Hellenism), Athens Publishing, 1972, page 374. From the performance programme.