Greek dramas are all so typical: the chorus chants, blind prophets stumble around screeching omens and a whole bunch of dudes hang out in togas.
That is, unless we are talking about Theatre X's newest production, in which women scamper about wearing negligees and the epic battle scenes involve launching rubber chickens at the enemy.
Aristophanes' "Lysistrata," subtitled "A Facsimile for the Modern Era," is a comedy about politics, gender and, most important, about sex.
It opens with sexual innuendo, advances on to suggestive props and costumes and finally draws to a conclusion with dirty jokes.
Lysistrata, played by Mia Ulibarri, is the bouncy, feisty little heroine clad in a poodle skirt. In the opening scene of the play, she calls a meeting of Greece's women - ambassadors from Sparta sport cowboy hats and miniskirts, while Athenian women strut in pumps - to devise a plot to end the war between the two great cities.
The women agree, reluctantly, to abstain from sex until their men abstain from war.
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They swear an oath to stay true to the plan, agreeing that if forced, they will "do it badly and not wiggle in response."
They seize the acropolis in Athens, present their terms to their husbands and wait for the effects.
They are not long in the coming and what we have next is a delightful, laugh-out-loud jab at men and their weakness for the opposite sex.
Much of the humor is slapstick, but it is inventive enough to entertain and keep its appeal for the hour-and-a-half long play.
While it may initially seem immature or offensive, "Lysistrata" gains momentum with the introduction of some hilarious characters, such as the forever quibbling veterans and widows.
They sing, holler, throw water on each other and provide a consistently comic, streetgang-esque rivalry.
A few of the men fall short of their female counterparts. The Athenian magistrate, played by Steven Pinzone, gets vaguely annoying with his show of wild gesticulations and melodramatics.
His role is to be annoying, but he takes it too far and actually gets on our nerves with his overacting.
The play is directed by graduate student Laine Conway, who also translated and adapted it from the original Greek text.
Though she used other translations for aid, Conway made this version of "Lysistrata" all her own by adding jokes, songs and modern elements.
Her jokes are often political in context, but occasionally play on the Greek setting - such as when Lysistrata hands the magistrate two coins for his trip down to Hades, then adds a can of dog food for Cerberus.
Overall, the play possesses more wit than crudity and more parody than feminist onslaught.
"Lysistrata" runs Feb. 6-9 and Feb. 13-16, at 7:30 p.m. in Theatre X in the Center for the Arts. Call 277-4569 for more information.
