Medea, Ifigenia, Antígona. La tragedia greca come specchio delle crisi sociali nel Perù del secondo Novecento

Abstract

This article investigates the presence and role of Greek tragedy in Peruvian theatrical works of the second half of the 20th century. In an unstable social and political context, Peruvian theater builds its own national identity and gives voice to the ideas of playwrights and companies. In this way, Greek tragedy politicizes again, and serves to convey the positions of the authors about some of the prominent social problems of their times, such as the use of racism by the dominant classes, the demographic boom and its problems for big cities as Lima, and the violence and injustice in times of dictatorship and terrorism. Through the figures of three Greek mythological women – Medea, Iphigenia, and Antigone –, three Peruvian playwrights express their view and criticism of such problems.