Accompanied by the otherworldly flutes of the Mediterranean and the frenzied writhing of the dancers onstage, the men and women of the University Theatre brought ancient Greek playwright Euripides’ two Trojan War tragedies “Iphigenia at Aulis” and “The Trojan Women” to the stage of the Seney-Stovall Chapel last week.

In “Iphigenia at Aulis,” Mycenaean King Agamemnon (Derrick Causey) has offended the goddess Artemis, who in turn prevented the winds from blowing and consequently stranded the Greek fleet massing to attack Troy.

Agamemnon has to make the terrible choice of sacrificing his daughter Iphigenia (Monica Padman) to placate the aggravated goddess or refuse, protecting his family but enraging the war-mad Greek army.

Causey portrayed the agony of Agamemnon excellently. University Ph.D candidate Cheryldee Huddleston put in a good performance as Agamemnon’s wife Clytemnestra, portraying her horror at her husband’s plan, which foreshadows her violent revenge over a decade later.

In “The Trojan Women,” Troy has fallen and the men have been systematically slaughtered by the victorious Greeks. The Trojan women now wait for their conquerors to divide them.

Causey continued his excellent performance as Agamemnon, a man slowly drifting towards madness since Iphigenia’s death. The only comfort he has been able to find is in wine and women, and now his wandering eye has fallen on Cassandra (Ruth Crews), a prophetess whom nobody believes thanks to a curse by the god Apollo.

The political intent of both plays was fairly obvious. The program has the antiwar slogans “Bring the Boys Back Home” and “Hell No We Won’t Go” emblazoned on the cover and contains a fair bit of political commentary.

In the plays themselves, the Greek men all wear modern camouflage and one of Agamemnon’s early appearances is heralded by red, white and blue imagery.

Both plays, particularly the latter, did an excellent job portraying the suffering of women in wartime.

Overall, the University Theatre did a great job of turning two dusty classic texts into a stunning performance.