Ever stared up at the George Washington Masonic Memorial, one of Alexandria’s most distinctive landmarks, and wondered about what goes on inside? Given its masonic “heritage”, you probably couldn’t help but imagine that the place might hold some mysteries.

The place does have a secret, and it comes in the form of a unique, start-up company-in-residence devoted largely to classical theater in the Greek style – Natural Theatricals. The group is staging its second show, Herakles, through August. And though word of mouth about the rising company is still spreading slowly (around 20 people made it for last night’s mid-week performance), this isn’t stopping the group from staging ambitious fare. The group performs in the indoor ampitheatre inside the memorial, which features a stage with a thrusting platform below it.

The company uses this setting to its advantage for its production of Herakles, though the upper seats suffer from some acoustic problems. The jutting platform hosts most of the play’s action. The stage itself is used handily as a window to ancient Greek ruins outside a hotel in the first act, and as the site of the Oracle at Delphi at those ruins in the second act.

The play isn’t the most accessible in the world, and feels slow-placed at times, less from the staging and performances and more because of a heavy, academic script.

Photo of Maryanne Mosher and John Tweel courtesy of Natural Theatricals