Well… what about – can’t I even say the one about how… what about the one about how… “I’m carrying such a burden on my shoulders that if someone doesn’t give me some relief I’ll start farting?ĭionysus No! I beg you! Please! Not that one either! At least not until I’m ready to puke. Shifts his load again and again the donkey farts) 11 The one where you say that… “every time I shift my bundle, I need to shift my shit bag!” The motion makes the donkey fart.)ĭionysus (Looks at the donkey and then at Xanthias suspiciously) Xanthias Which one? (He shifts his load from one shoulder to the next. He’s about to begin the joke when…)ĭionysus Sure, sure… except… (Xanthias frowns) Xanthias Then what about some other slick joke?ĭionysus Anything but the one about how miserable you feel! You know the one I mean! Shall I?ĭionysus Sure, yes, all right! Any joke you like except the one about how your bum is under pressure. Hey, boss! Should I tell this lot a joke? One of my famous ones. Xanthias (looks around the audience, smacks his knee with laughter and, waving his hand over the auditorium.) Xanthias (Takes a deep sigh, scratches under his armpits and finally chuckles to himself)ĭionysus (stops and looks up at Xanthias, dropping his club on his foot. They walk around the stage a few times before Xanthias suddenly stops.
The phalloi of the two men plus that of the donkey are truly obsequious to the demands of gravity.
Center Stage is a house which is used first as the house of Heracles and then of Plouto. He is rather rotund and carries a protruding and obvious belly. He is a contradiction of effeminacy and misplaced bravado.
This club gives him also enormous discomfort and frequently lifts it up off the floor, puts it down again, drags it along, puts it on his shoulder, changes shoulders, giving a heartfelt grunt every time.
Dionysus is walking beside him disguised as Heracles, ie, on top of his usual delicate bright yellow robe and beautiful, red lady boots (full of bows and ribbons) he has thrown a lion’s skin and he’s carrying -or more often than not, dragging on the ground – the huge club with which Heracles is usually identified. He is tired and uncomfortable and shifts his own weight on the donkey. Xanthias is riding a donkey and is carrying a bundle of pots, pans a variety of small bundles tied to the edge of a long stick, resting on his shoulder. Enter two men, Dionysus and Xanthias, his slave.
Under no circumstances should any of this work be used as part of a collage, which includes the work of other writers or translators. For use by any theatrical, educational or cinematic organisation, however, including a non-commercial one, permission must be sought. This work may be freely reproduced, stored and transmitted, electronically or otherwise, for any non-commercial purpose. Translated by George Theodoridis © Copyright 2008, all rights reserved - Bacchicstage
‘Aristophanes’ - "Greek Dramas" (p355, 1900): Internet Archive Book Images