No part left untouched in Greek comedy 'Lysistrata'

The thing you have to remember about Greek comedy is that it's all about the dick jokes.

Greece may have been at the forefront of philosophy and science in the ancient world, but it was still filled with men that had filthy, lecherous minds. Director Kathy Lingo and the UTD players obviously understood this when they started work on their production of "Lysistrata."

With 27 cast members, "Lysistrata" is one of the largest and most ambitious projects that UTD has staged in some time.

The set design is elaborate and very well done, as are all of the costumes and "special effects". It was clear that Lingo and her crew weren't going for period accuracy in this production, and you can catch quite a few gags hidden among the scenery and props.

A few pop-culture references tucked away among the stalls and fountains of ancient Athens aren't the only breaks from tradition, though. A narrator, in the form of a bald German history lecturer, has been added to set up the back story and explain aspects of Greek culture.

The traditional Greek chorus has been replaced by a very modern musical number, and a whole mess of "300" jokes and action sequences dot the production.

The action scenes do deserve some special mention here. "Lysistrata" is filled with stage fights, and all of them are exceedingly well choreographed.

Every action sequence is entertaining, and well staged enough to not look distractingly fake. Considering the fact that many of the fights contain upwards of 20 brawlers, this is an impressive feat.

"Lysistrata" is not a perfect production. The actors have had a few (understandable) issues getting some of the thicker dialog down. There was a great tendency, especially with the female lead, to speak a little too fast to be easily understood. The plethora of pop-culture and "300" references are overused and lose their punch at times.

Thankfully, it was easy to ignore these minor issues when the male actors put on their obscenely long prosthetic penises.

These ridiculous stage props are not modern-age alterations, by the way. The ancient Greeks wore massive, absurdly large fake penises for several of their plays.

Very little was taboo in Greece, and very little is taboo in this play. Lingo took some bold risks here, especially near the end of the play. Most of them panned out; the audience I saw the show with laughed hysterically.

If you think Greek theatre is just a bunch of boring old plays about guys in togas, think again. "Lysistrata" is a well-produced and well-acted comedy that leaves the audience laughing, and with a whole new appreciation for the ancient world's sense of humor.

"Lysistrata" ran April 16-18 and 23-25.

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