Synopsis
The Golden Six
$13
Published by Dramatists Play Service
Large Mixed Cast
The 'golden six' are the grandsons and step-grandsons of Augustus Caesar, who hopes to choose one as his heir. All but the limping and stuttering Claudius are handsome and heroic, and all six are staunch outspoken republicans
They are opposed to their grandfather's consolidation of power and emergence as Emperor. Augustus' wife, Livia, plays the doting grandmother and the loyal spouse By the end of Act I we know Livia for what she is
Two of the grandsons have been murdered and a third banished on perjured testimony." ~ New York Herald-Tribune
Livia poisons Augustus, having first forced him to name her son as his successor. Then she insists that Tiberius name Caligua, rather than his own son, as his successor. The Empire goes from bad to worse and Caligua comes to an untidy end, his power-mad tactics eventually bringing his own destruction
At the end of the play Claudius, who has wanted to restore the republic, finds himself Emperor and can do nothing but accept that unwanted role
The last play by one of America's foremost playwrights
"A stately, searing dramaburns and blasts" ~ NY World-Telegram & Sun
"It is a complex tale Anderson has to tell, but he does it adroitly and with a good sense of theatre" ~ NY News
Cast of 16 men and 9 women is required