摘要：The Royal National Theatre¡¯s production of Eugene O¡¯Neill¡¯s Mourning Becomes Electra at
the Royal National Theatre (London 2003¨C4) downplayed the relationship between O¡¯Neill¡¯s
trilogy and Aeschylus¡¯ Oresteia. Rather than following the stage directions of O¡¯Neill, which
are evocative of classical staging conventions, the RNT production sought to foreground
O¡¯Neill¡¯s theatrical legacy of nineteenth-century melodrama and fusion of late nineteenth- and
early twentieth-century realism and expressionism. Moreover, the director Howard Davies
presented a political interpretation of O¡¯Neill¡¯s text that focused on changing political worlds.
In so doing, the production offered an innovative view of O¡¯Neill that located him within his
theatrical context, rather than juxtaposing him with his classical source material. However,
Davies¡¯ directorial interpretation raises interesting questions about O¡¯Neill¡¯s relationship with
his classical source material. The main aim of this article therefore is to re-examine the
relationship between O¡¯Neill (1888¨C1953) and Aeschylus.
