Tragedy and the Gender of Sacrifice: On "The Difference between Poetry and Rhetoric"

In dialogue with Piotr Gruszczynski, the dramaturg of Warsaw's Nowy Teatr, this chapter explores the present resonances of the legacy of ancient genre categories, bringing together reflections on Aeschylus and Audre Lorde in the context of contemporary European theater-making by addressing a specific production, (A)pollonia. This work is still in the Nowy Teatr's repertoire more than a decade after its premiere and has been seen at festivals throughout the world. At the heart of the discussion is the question of how representations of self-sacrifice in both mythical and historical frames of reference are gendered, which provides a lens for thinking about the conditions of and for “tragedy” today. As the cultural memory of genocide in Europe takes on renewed significance with the passing of its living memory, the example of (A)pollonia allows for reflection on how theater engages with its own means, not least in the dramaturgy of its participation in the very culture of memory itself.