View source for Hecyra

{{Lewis
|lshtext=<b>Hĕcyra</b>: ae, f., = [[Ἑκυρά]],<br /><b>I</b> The Stepmother, the [[title]] of a [[comedy]] of Terence.
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{{Gaffiot
|gf=<b>Hĕcўra</b>, æ, f. (Ἑκυρά), l’Hécyre (la Belle-Mère), titre d’une comédie de Térence.
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{{wkpen
|wketx=Hecyra (English: The Mother-in-Law) is a comedic Latin play by the early Roman playwright Terence.

The Hecyra was a failure at its first two stagings. The first in 165 BC was disrupted when a rumor spread that a tightrope-walker and boxers were about to perform. This upset is referred to in the prologue of Terence's next play Phormio, produced in 161 BC. In 160 BC the production was cancelled when the theater was stormed by a group of rowdy gladiators' fans. It was presented successfully only at its third attempt later that same year.

A musical phrase accompanying a single line of Hecyra was copied in the 18th century by Italian composer Arcangelo Corelli from a 10th-century manuscript and was for a long time believed to be all that remains of the entire body of ancient Roman music. However, musicologist Thomas J. Mathiesen comments that it is no longer believed to be authentic.

Hecyra is based on plays by Apollodorus of Carystus and Menander.
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