Demeter and Persephone

Greek mythology

play by Ruth Salles

This is a Greek choir, with a lot of movement and lightness, which I wrote in hexameter lines. He talks about the myth of Demeter, the earth mother who takes care of plants when she has her daughter Persephone by her side, but who neglects them when Persephone is kidnapped by the god Hades and is forced to spend half the year in the shadow realm. So Greek mythology tells us about the change of seasons. The lines of the first stanza of the poem “I will sing the Earth”, attributed to Homer, and others from an excerpt from an ode by Horace are sung.

Suggested for 11 year olds.
CHARACTERS

Chorus of Nymphs – light blue tunic.
Chorus of plants – green tunic and a light brown veil.
Chorus of Gods:
Zeus – orange robe.
Phoebus – white or yellow-gold robe.
Iris – robe of three colors.
Hermes – light yellow tunic.
Hecate – gray robe.
Hades – violet robe.
Demeter – apple green or white tunic and light navy blue cloak; wreath of
of poppy and wheat.
Persephone – pink tunic; field flowers wreath.
Servant of Hades.
(In case other gods take part in the chorus: Artemis – violet / Ares – red / Aphrodite – green.)

OBSERVATION: The drawings were made by Beatriz Cavalcante Stein, who represented the play when she was in the 5th year at Escola Waldorf Rudolf Steiner,

DISPOSITION
(suggestions)

Nymphs Chorus of Gods
Phoebus
Hecate plants
Demeter and Persephone Hades
kingdom of hades

INTRODUCTION

ALL (sing Homer's verses):
“I will sing the earth,
mother of all things,
ancestor of the world.
Source
of everything that crawls on the ground,
nothing in the sea,
fly in the air.”

HADES TAKES PERSEPHONE

CHORUS OF NYMPH, PLANTS and GODS:
– Hail Demeter, mother earth who takes care of all plants;
shows mortals how to plow their fields carefully,
and sow the seeds, then reap all the wheat,
and thresh the ears, keeping the harvested grain,
and, from the ground grains, add the flour, making the bread.

DEMETER (to Persephone):
– Dearest daughter Persephone, I have to go.
I must tend the crops, make every plant appear.
I am in charge of rye, wheat, corn, barley
and, in general, every grain that has been in the land planted.

PERSEPHONE:
– Mother, could the sea nymphs keep me company?

DEMETER:
– Yes, but don't go far, or go out into the fields alone!
Away from their mothers, the girls get lost in the dark woods.

PERSEPHONE:
- O mother Demeter, I will be very prudent.

DEMETER: Farewell, my daughter! (walks away)

CHORUS OF GODS (narrating, with movement of nymphs and Persephone):
– The nymphs appear on top of the waves. Persephone calls them.
They bring her, from the waters, a necklace of beautiful shells.
Plants sway in the wind. Persephone hears her name.

CHORUS OF PLANTS:
– Come, Persephone! Come and pick our beautiful flowers.
Make wreaths with them and give as gifts to friends.

PERSEPHONE (to the nymphs):
– Shall we go to the field with me?

CHORUS OF NYMPHES: – Oh, no! For us it is a danger!
We could soon dry out passed out and pale.

CHORUS OF GODS (narrating, as Persephone moves):
– Persephone seeks the flowers, alone in the flowery field.
It picks violets, hyacinths and moves away from the nymphs.
Suddenly he sees a flower farther than he had ever seen.
It is the most beautiful of all, and how in the light it shines!

CHORUS OF NYMPHS (warning Persephone):
– The leaves are poisonous, perhaps. You better be careful!

PERSEPHONE:
- Yes. Without touching them, by their roots I will pull them out.

CHORUS OF NYMPH (frightened):
– Oh, the roots are deep… The earth begins to move…
A muffled rumble is heard… O Persephone, leave that flower! (Hades leaves the choir.)

PERSEPHONE (takes out the plant and sees Hades emerge with his servant and pull her by the hand):
- Ready! I pulled it off. - Oh no! Where are you taking me sir?

HADES:
- Come with me. I am Hades, the king from the depths of the earth.
I will crown you queen of all my riches.
I have a palace of gold, and the windows are of crystal,
and diamonds sparkle, lighten the realm of shadows.

PERSEPHONE (attempts to escape, fails and is taken by Hades):
- No! I'd rather go back and see my mother and my home again.
– O mother Demeter! Come get me!

DEMETER: – I hear a call!…

DEMETER LOOKS FOR PERSEPHONE

CHORUS OF PLANTS (narrating, as Demeter moves):
– Run Demeter, look for Persephone everywhere.

DEMETER:
– Oh, where is my daughter? Answer me, sea nymphs!

CHORUS OF NYMPH (pointing away):
“She went looking for beautiful flowers, and we didn't see her come back.

DEMETER (turning to the audience side, back and forth):
– Tell me, naiads, satyrs, fauns! – Answer, mortals!
Where is she? They do not know? – Not even the god Pan will know?

CHORUS OF NYMPHES (narrating, as Demeter goes to meet Hecate, who leaves the choir; the plants fall):
– Demeter leaves the fields, and the plants wither and fall.
Go to Hecate, sad woman so gloomy...
She only hears moans, sighs, groans from the world.

HECATE:
- Come cry with me...

DEMETER (stops there sadly, but soon revives):
- But we must fetch my daughter!
Phoebus, the god of the sun, he sees from above what he wants.

HECATE:
- No, my eyes only know how to cry and they won't take it
all that glow of Phoebus. Don't listen to their merry chants!
Keep crying with me!…

DEMETER (walks away from Hecate, who returns to the choir):
- I'll look for my daughter!
(going to Phoebus, who has already left the choir):
– Tell me, Phoebus, where did you go, where is my daughter Persephone?

PHOEBUS:
- Hades took her. You are in the splendor of your shadow realm.
Zeus gave Persephone to Hades. She will be your wife and queen.

DEMETER and NYMPHAS:
- Oh, oh, oh, oh!……………

DEMETER (to Phoebus):
- Come with me to get her!

FEBO: - I can't. I still can not,
with this beam of sunbeams, go to the bottom of the earth. (he returns to the choir)

DEMETER:
"Ah, if it was Zeus who let Persephone rob me like that,
nothing with me, and I won't have her with me again.
I will stay among men. I will never return to Olympus;
nor will I tend any more the fields, nor these withered gardens.

THE GODS DELIBERATE

CHORUS OF GODS (minus Zeus):
– Hard is the fate of the earth. It looks like desert sand.
We see the hungry cattle and the men in sad misery.
- Zeus, what to do at this time? We must call out for Demeter!

ZEUS (to Iris):
– Iris, O goddess of the air, who descends from the gods to men,
Go convince her to come back to us and overcome this hunger.

CHORUS OF NYMPHS (narrating, as the scene goes on):
– Iris meets Demeter, conveys Zeus' request.
It makes futile attempts. Demeter just wants her daughter.

DEMETER:
- I'll only take care of this floor with Persephone here by my side.

IRIS (returning to the gods):
– It will only turn all green, O Zeus, if Persephone returns!

CHORUS OF GODS (minus Zeus):
– Oh, what to do? What a disgrace if plants are not born, O Zeus!

ZEUS (to Hermes):
– Hermes, faithful messenger! Go, Hermes, to the realm of shadows!
Talk to Hades, convince him to release his wife!

(While Hermes goes to Hades and talks to him, the choirs and Demeter sing the excerpt from Horace's ode.)

CHORUS OF GODS and NYMPHES; DEMETER:
“O Hermes, eloquent grandson of Atlas,
I want to sing to you
as messenger of the great Zeus,
of great Zeus and the gods!”

PERSEPHONE AND THE POMEGRANATE SEEDS

PERSEPHONE (wanders through the kingdom of Hades and looks around; Hermes waits):
– Not all the light of these stones compares to the rays of the sun.
Ah, my flowers are much more beautiful than all this gold.

CHORUS OF NYMPH AND GODS (narrating, as the scene goes on):
- Hades consents to his wife's return, but he devises a ruse:
brings her the fruit of the plant that resisted the most.

PERSEPHONE:
– A pomegranate! I feel hungry…

CHORUS OF NYMPHES (frightened): – You don't know the danger you are in!
Oh, it has already bitten off six seeds!

HADES (to Persephone): – You are free, Persephone!
Hermes will lead you, so that the famine ends.

(Hermes takes Persephone to the gods.)

THE RETURN OF PERSEPHONE

DEMETER (seeing the plants flapping in the wind):
– Oh, what is this? Does the field no longer obey me? it's green
before Persephone returns?

PERSEPHONE (appearing): – Mother, here I am! I am fine! (hug each other)

DEMETER:
– Ah!… My daughter!… But tell me: King Hades came to give you
any food?

PERSEPHONE: — I tasted six seeds of a beautiful pomegranate…

CHORUS OF GODS:
“Now, Demeter knows well that every seed of those
holds Persephone one month each year deep in the earth.

DEMETER:
– Ah, my daughter… six months old queen of Hades…

PERSEPHONE:
– Mom, but the other six months I'll be here by your side.

CHORUS OF PLANTS (while the scene goes on):
– The two return to the gods, who soon receive them so well…
All the fields already show the green of the growing plants.
The flowers open, the fruits drop, the hunger ends.

CHORUS OF GODS (while the scene goes on):
– Ah, but after six months, Persephone returns to her kingdom.
Poor Demeter, so sad, forgets about plants again. (plants fall)
Leaves wither and fall… Flowers no longer bloom…

(The plants rise again.)

CHORUS OF NYMPH AND GODS (as the scene goes on):
– When Persephone returns, Demeter rejoices again.
All the plants already grow in the fields. The flowers return.

(If you like, the play can end with everyone singing Homer's lines from the beginning again.)

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