The Invention of Love
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| - | '''Sextus Aurelius Propertius''' was a [[Latin]] [[elegy|elegiac]] poet of the Augustan age. He was born around 50–45 BC in [[Assisium]]) and died shortly after 15 BC. | ||
| - | Propertius' surviving work comprises four books of ''[[elegy|Elegies]]''. He was friends with the poets [[Gallus]] and [[Virgil]], and with them had as his patron [[Maecenas]], and through Maecenas the emperor [[Augustus]]. | + | '''''The Invention of Love''''' is a 1997 play by [[Tom Stoppard]] portraying the life of poet [[A.E. Housman]], focusing specifically on his personal life and love for a college classmate. The play is written from the viewpoint of Housman dealing with his memories towards the end of his life and contains many [[classical antiquity|classical]] allusions. Considered by many to be Stoppard's finest play, it has been called "esoteric". In fact, to demystify the play's many historical and academic references, the New York production team provided the audiences with a 30-page booklet on the political and artistic history of the late-[[Victorian period]]. |
| - | == Influence == | + | ==Synopsis== |
| - | Propertius himself says he was popular and even scandalous in his own day. [[Horace]], however, says that he would have to "endure much" and "stop up his ears" if he had to listen to "Callimachus...to please the sensitive stock of poets"; Postgate and others see this as a veiled attack on Propertius, who considered himself the Roman heir to Callimachus. This judgement also seems to be upheld by [[Quintilian]], who ranks the elegies of [[Tibullus]] higher and is somewhat dismissive of the poet, but Propertius' popularity is attested by the presence of his verses in the graffiti preserved at [[Pompeii]]. | + | The play begins with A.E. Housman, dead at age 77, standing on the bank of the river Styx. Dreaming that he is boarding his boat for the afterlife – captained by a petulant [[Charon (mythology)|Charon]] – Housman begins to remember moments from his life, starting with his matriculation to [[Oxford University]], where he studied [[Classics]]. The play unfolds as a collection of short scenes that trace, primarily, Housman's relationship with Moses Jackson, the man for whom Housman harboured a lifelong, unrequited love. The scenes also explore the late-Victorian artistic ideals as well as Housman's intellectual growth into a preeminent Latin textual scholar. Throughout the play, the older Housman comments on and occasionally talks to the characters on stage, including his younger self. |
| - | Propertius fell into obscurity in the Middle Ages, but was rediscovered during the Italian Renaissance along with the other elegists. [[Petrarch]]'s love sonnets certainly show the influence of his writing, and [[Pope Pius II|Aeneas Silvius]] (the future Pope Pius II) titled a collection of his youthful elegies "Cinthia". There are also a set of "Propertian Elegies" attributed to the English writer [[Ben Jonson]], though the authorship of these is disputed. [[Goethe]]'s 1795 collection of "Elegies" also shows some familiarity with Propertius' poetry. | + | ==Production history== |
| - | Propertius is the lyrical protagonist of [[Joseph Brodsky]]'s poem "Anno Domini" (1968), originally written in Russian. | + | The play premièred at the [[Cottesloe Theatre]] in the [[Royal National Theatre]], [[London]], on 25 September 1997, moved later into the larger [[Lyttelton Theatre]], and then transferred to the [[Haymarket Theatre]] in 1998. The old Housman was played by [[John Wood (English actor)|John Wood]] and the young Housman by [[Paul Rhys]]. The director was [[Richard Eyre]]. The production won the 1997 [[Evening Standard Award]] for Best Play. |
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| - | == Modern assessment == | + | |
| - | In the 20th century [[Ezra Pound]]'s poem "[[Homage to Sextus Propertius]]" cast Propertius as something of a satirist and political dissident, and his translation/interpretation of the elegies presented them as ancient examples of Pound's own [[Imagism|Imagist]] theory of art. Pound identified in Propertius an example of what he called (in "How to Read") 'logopoeia', "the dance of the intellect among words." Gilbert Highet, in ''Poets in a Landscape'', attributed this to Propertius' use of mythic allusions and circumlocution, which Pound mimics to more comic effect in his ''Homage''. The imagist interpretation, the poet's tendency to sustain an interior monologue, and the deeply personal nature of his poetry have made Propertius a favorite in the modern age. Two modern English translations of his work have appeared since 2000, and the playwright [[Tom Stoppard]] in his masterwork ''[[The Invention of Love]]'' suggests the poet was responsible for much of what the West regards today as "romantic love". | + | |
| + | The play's [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] run was at the [[Lyceum Theatre (New York)|Lyceum Theatre]]. It opened on March 29, 2001, starring [[Richard Easton]] as the older Housman and [[Robert Sean Leonard]] as the young Housman. Both actors won [[Tony Award]]s for their performances, Easton winning Best Actor in a Play, Leonard winning Best Featured Actor in a Play. | ||
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The Invention of Love is a 1997 play by Tom Stoppard portraying the life of poet A.E. Housman, focusing specifically on his personal life and love for a college classmate. The play is written from the viewpoint of Housman dealing with his memories towards the end of his life and contains many classical allusions. Considered by many to be Stoppard's finest play, it has been called "esoteric". In fact, to demystify the play's many historical and academic references, the New York production team provided the audiences with a 30-page booklet on the political and artistic history of the late-Victorian period.
Synopsis
The play begins with A.E. Housman, dead at age 77, standing on the bank of the river Styx. Dreaming that he is boarding his boat for the afterlife – captained by a petulant Charon – Housman begins to remember moments from his life, starting with his matriculation to Oxford University, where he studied Classics. The play unfolds as a collection of short scenes that trace, primarily, Housman's relationship with Moses Jackson, the man for whom Housman harboured a lifelong, unrequited love. The scenes also explore the late-Victorian artistic ideals as well as Housman's intellectual growth into a preeminent Latin textual scholar. Throughout the play, the older Housman comments on and occasionally talks to the characters on stage, including his younger self.
Production history
The play premièred at the Cottesloe Theatre in the Royal National Theatre, London, on 25 September 1997, moved later into the larger Lyttelton Theatre, and then transferred to the Haymarket Theatre in 1998. The old Housman was played by John Wood and the young Housman by Paul Rhys. The director was Richard Eyre. The production won the 1997 Evening Standard Award for Best Play.
The play's Broadway run was at the Lyceum Theatre. It opened on March 29, 2001, starring Richard Easton as the older Housman and Robert Sean Leonard as the young Housman. Both actors won Tony Awards for their performances, Easton winning Best Actor in a Play, Leonard winning Best Featured Actor in a Play.
