Tony Harrison: The Kaisers of Carnuntum

Allusion to Classical figure the cast consists of Orpheus, Marcus Aurelius, Commodus, ‘Julius Bollux’ (i.e. Julius Pollux, the 2nd century grammarian and sophist) and Faustina. Commodus also takes on the guise of Hercules.

Allusion to Classical place Carnuntum

Relationship to Classical text Marcus Aurelius opens the play, singing from his Meditations in the original Greek. The Chorus picks up his song, translating it into various European languages. Later, Julius Bollux is made to read from the chapter ‘Ta en Karnounto’, which introduces Marcus Aurelius’ use of the term ‘Kαισαρ’, as the equivalent of the Latin ‘Caesar’ (see p.93). Julius Bollux refers to Aelius Lampridius’ Vita Commodi (p.88) and at the end of the play     the Chorus sing a setting of a passage from chapter XIX. In his article ‘The Tears and the Trumpets’ (Arion 9.2 (2001), p.1-22) Harrison highlights a connection to Martial’s Liber Spectaculorum, epigram 21, in a line spoken by Commodus, which borrows Martial’s contrast between ficta and facta (see Tony Harrison: Plays 3, p.76. NB: subsequent emendations of the Latin text no longer generally support the reading of ficta in this line). The sections of the play which represent Orpheus or describe him being mutilated by a bear take their theme from this epigram.

Classical/post-Classical intertexts Scenes of Roman imperial dominion and brutality make strong allusions to the Second World War (Faustina refers directly to Hitler, Mussolini and Stalin: p.100 in the Faber edition) whilst blurred references to geographical boundaries, ancient and modern, remind the audience that Carnuntum was both a Cold War border and a Roman frontier post. Marcus Aurelius’ opening song refers to ‘emperors old and new, / Caesar, Stalin, Ceausescu.’ 

Comment As Harrison confirms in the closing lines, his play toys with the line between comedy and tragedy

Note First performed 2 June 1995 in the Roman amphitheatre of Petronell/Carnuntum, Austria.
Collected in Tony Harrison Plays 3, Faber, 1996.