Penthesilea

Penthesilea is an 1808 tragedy by the German playwright Heinrich von Kleist about the mythological Amazon queen, Penthesilea, described as an exploration of sexual frenzy. Goethe rejected it as "unplayable". It was first performed on 25 April 1876 at the Königliches Schauspielhaus in Berlin, 65 years after the author's death. Summary The Amazons, a fierce race of female warriors, have a sacred tradition: they can marry only those warriors whom they have defeated in battle. Nor may they choose their partners voluntarily even from the ranks of the defeated, but must submit to random pairing at a Festival of Roses. The Amazons therefore intervene in the Trojan War to fight against the Greeks so that they can gain captives. The drama opens on the battlefield before the gates of Troy, where the Greeks are besieging the city and are interrupted by belligerent Amazons who attack and endanger the Greek princes. At a parley, the Amazon queen Penthesilea and the Greek prince Achilles come face-to-face and fall in love; from now on she will devote all her energy to overcoming Achilles in battle so that she may win him as her husband. The Greeks do not understand why the Amazons refuse to form an alliance or, when battle is resumed, why Penthesilea so single-mindedly pursues Achilles. In the second scene the Greeks learn that Penthesilea has captured their hero Achilles. The messenger describes the Amazons' surprise attack. They surrounded Achilles, who first freed himself and tried to flee until his horses and his cart collapsed. Penthesilea and her followers drew closer, but when the queen's chariot overturned he escaped.