蜜桃TV

In The Suppliants, the incomplete and seldom-performed Greek tragedy written by Aeschylus, 50 Danaids flee Egypt and take refuge in a sanctuary among gods. But because their fate is unknown, the ending is open to interpretation.

This much is true: 鈥淚t has a lot to do with political, social and moral responsibility and especially female autonomy and bodily autonomy,鈥� says Sydney Marie Hughes 鈥�25 MA.

鈥淲hen I was reading it, I was shocked at just how relevant it is today,鈥� Hughes says. 鈥淲e tend to view Ancient Greek theater as this thing from the long-ago past that we study in an almost exclusively literary way. But it鈥檚 tangible. It鈥檚 relevant to us now.鈥�

Hughes, a master鈥檚 student in Theatre, is the recipient of the 2025 Graduate Research Prize for her paper, 鈥淯ndone with Terror: Aeschylus鈥� Suppliants as Agents of Binary Terror,鈥� published in the 2025 edition of CONCEPT, the interdisciplinary scholarly journal of graduate students in 蜜桃TV鈥檚 College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

The Suppliants (457 B.C.) is believed to be part of a tetralogy, a group of four literary or operatic works, however, neither the entirety of the play nor the other works in the series are known.

For her research article, Hughes applies embodied performance, which emphasizes physical body movements in expressing meaning of text, as well as Vivian M. Petraka鈥檚 theory on 鈥渂inary terror,鈥� which challenges or disrupts an audience鈥檚 established binary assumptions.

鈥淲e often think of gender when we use that term, but it can mean 鈥榰s versus them,鈥� 鈥榙ark versus light,鈥� 鈥榗itizen versus barbarian,鈥欌�� Hughes says. 鈥淚t explicitly or implicitly shapes our social understandings and social functions, and they become challenged when something doesn鈥檛 fit with what we expect it to be.鈥�

The play鈥檚 meaning can also be shaped depending on the context of the performance. For example, a 2022 production starring American and Ukrainian actors that Hughes researched became a poignant commentary on the Russia-Ukraine war.

鈥淭hey did not change the text, but by letting those actors tell the story, the interpretation becomes relevant to the war,鈥� Hughes says.

Being able to apply meaning to contemporary issues and challenges makes Ancient Greek texts, like The Suppliants, resonate. Before becoming a fulltime graduate student at Villanova, Hughes taught theater to high school students in Orlando, Fla. She was taken aback by how much they responded to Greek plays.

鈥淚 want people to be able to read and research them with an eye for producing them with modern relevance,鈥� Hughes says. 鈥淚t makes something worth studying and it allows us to consider that new issues and ideas are actually very old and have been part of theater and literature for centuries.鈥�

For her thesis project, Hughes is producing a short version of The Suppliants May 8-9 in the Mullen Center.

鈥淚鈥檓 trying to decide how I want it to end,鈥� she says. 鈥淲hat we do have is a moment where the women of Argos have this exchange with the Danaids about what it means to be a woman, and they say they鈥檒l take them in to live with them. They say they have no way of knowing what the gods will do after this, but they will protect them.鈥�

鈥淚 think that non-ending is maybe my favorite ending鈥攁n acknowledgement that all we can do is what we believe is morally right,鈥� Hughes says. 鈥淵eah, and I think that's my perfect ending.鈥�

CONCEPT seeks to honor and highlight not only exemplary papers within their respective disciplines but also scholarship with wide interdisciplinary appeal. It is published in partnership with the Office of Graduate Studies and the Falvey Memorial Library.

The College community celebrated the 48th edition of CONCEPT during a recognition ceremony on Friday, April 11, in Driscoll Hall. Faculty Managing Editor John Kurtz, PhD, and other faculty editors, as well as student authors, editors and peer reviewers discussed their works during the event.

The following is a list of authors whose papers appear in print and online.

Papers appearing in print:

Graduate Research Prize
Sydney Marie Hughes, Theatre
鈥淯ndone With Terror: Aeschylus鈥� Suppliants as Agents of Binary Terror鈥�  

Jenna Cholowinski, History
鈥淭hree Augustinian Clerics Die: Navigating Villanova鈥檚 Experience During a Global Pandemic鈥�

Padmasree Gade, Computer Science
鈥淭he Psychology Behind Password Choices: A System Dynamics Approach to Enhancing Security Hygiene鈥�

Emily Hathcock, Psychology
鈥淧arasocial Relationship Strength and the Need for Social Well-Being as a Function of Gender Identification鈥�

Nicholas Kennedy, Education
鈥淟unch and Learn: Testing the Theory of Change鈥�

Iuri Macedo Piovezan, Political Science
鈥淯nveiling Patriarchy: Brazilian Gender Dynamics Through the Lens of the Bolsonaro-Maria do Rosario Incident鈥�

Papers appearing online:

Brian Haughton, Political Science
鈥淢emorandum Mori: How the Budapest Memorandum Failed to Protect Ukraine鈥�

Guinevere Keith, Theology
鈥淭he Catholic Church Should Host an Interfaith Synod on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict鈥�

Nika Kirillova, Public Administration
鈥淟eading Against the Odds: Women鈥檚 Leadership Challenges and Strategies in the Nonprofit Sector鈥�

Julia Reagan, English
鈥淵ou Can Never Work Facts as You Would Fixed Quantities: Political Economy鈥檚 Failures in Thomas Malthus and Mary Barton鈥�

Nicole Roldan, Education
鈥淧olicy Analysis of the 鈥楶erformance-based Funding Model for State-related Institutions鈥� Within Governor Shapiro鈥檚 鈥楤lueprint for Higher Education鈥� in Pennsylvania鈥�

Isaac Smith, History
鈥淢ore Than a Peanut Inventor: George Washington Carver and the Natural Environment鈥�