CHORAL PROJECTIONS AND EMBOLIMA IN EURIPIDES' TRAGEDIES

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In this paper I argue that in Euripides’ hands choral projections, especially those in which the chorus takes on another identity, become a tool to create moments of pure ritual choreia in full accordance with the tragic chorus’s original intention. The fact that odes constructed with choral projections appear to be less dependent upon the dramatic plot of the play (the so called embolima) does not diminish the importance of the chorus. Instead, it shows the dynamic character of choral projections for retaining the original intention of the tragic chorus with moments of pure ritual atmosphere and frequently implied dionysiac choreia in the context of the Great Dionysia. In particular, some patterns of choral projection in Euripides’ later plays, as in the dancing Pleiades, Hyades, dolphin(s), and ship(s), offer a fresh approach to the poet’s role in the innovative spirit of the contemporary New Music. I show that these Euripidean choral projection motifs may have inspired finely detailed descriptions in contemporary dithyrambic poets, who tried to reproduce patterns of Euripidean lyrics along with impressive musical compositions.

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