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Ancient Roman comedy Pseudolus to be presented at St. Olaf College

mjc
April 24, 2001

NORTHFIELD, Minn. ? Plautus? ancient Roman comedy Pseudolus, which inspired the modern Broadway hit A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, will be presented at St. Olaf College Friday and Saturday, April 27-28, as part of the inauguration of St. Olaf President Christopher Meredith Thomforde.

The play, at 7:30 p.m. each day in Room 233, Christiansen Hall of Music, is free and open to the public. Classics Professor Anne Groton directs the comedy.

Pseudolus, written in 191 B.C., will be performed by 18 St. Olaf students in a mixture of Latin and English, with music and songs. The title character is a crafty slave who dreams up a wild scheme to help his young master acquire the girl he loves. Knowledge of Latin is not required to enjoy the show, which is suitable for adults and children age 5 and up.

This marks the 12th time that St. Olaf classics students have staged a comedy by the Roman playwright Titus Maccius Plautus (254-184 B.C.), who adapted all of his plays from earlier Greek originals.

On Thursday, April 26, the cast will go on tour to perform Pseudolus at four southeastern Minnesota schools: Minneapolis South High School (8:40 a.m.), Edina High School (10:30 a.m.), Schaeffer Academy in Rochester (1:45 p.m.) and Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter (7:30 p.m.).

The play is one of many events that are part of the Christopher Thomforde inauguration. Five concerts, two worship services, an art exhibit, a dance festival, a new historical exhibit and a gala fireworks display also will be part of the inaugural festivities Thursday through Sunday, April 26-29.

St. Olaf College prepares students to become responsible citizens of the world, fostering development of mind, body and spirit. A four-year, coeducational liberal arts college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), St. Olaf has a student enrollment of 2,950 and a full-time faculty of approximately 300. It is one of Money Guide?s top 100 "elite values in college education today," and it leads the nation?s colleges in percentage of students who study abroad.

Contact Michael Cooper at 507-786-3315 or cooperm@stolaf.edu.