Lysistrata
Lysistrata is the main character in the play, a strong woman who comes up with a plan to stop the war from further destroying their country and killing their men. She devises a plan by which the women will refuse sex to their husbands as a way of convincing them to stop the war. She is a dynamic, passionate, and persuasive leader, getting all the women to agree to her plot to enact real political protest and change.
The Chorus of Old Men
Just as in other Greek tragedies, there is a chorus. In Lysistrata’s case, there are two choruses: the chorus of men and the chorus of women. The chorus of men adds comic relief to the play, as they are often harried and put upon by the women in their lives. They think they are strong and able to control the world, but they have a very hard time doing so.
The Chorus of Old Women
The chorus of women are able to stand up against the men and get the upper hand at many points in the play. They marvel at Lysistrata's organizing abilities, and encourage the younger women characters to go forward with their plot to withhold sex from the men.
Calonice
Calonice is one of Lysistrata’s neighbors and the first one to arrive at the meeting organized by Lysistrata in the first scene. She is very motivated to help with Lysistrata's plan and is in charge of organizing the women for the meeting. She delivers the oath that the women recite before drinking wine together.
Myrrhina
Myrrhina is a young matron from the outskirts of town. She is the first one to arrive with another group of women. She woos her husband, Cinesias, but delays sex, driving him insane, in the fourth scene of the play.
Lampito
Lampito is a Spartan woman who is very large, with giant breasts, and a rather simple way of speaking (a running joke in the play is that Spartan citizens are big and dumb). She goes along with Lysistrata's plan, and her participation is key to its success.
Cinesias
Myrrhina‘s husband is a general who is particularly overcome by his desire for sex, even though his wife withholds it. He comes to the Acropolis to beg his wife to come back home and perform her duties as a wife. He is a lusty general who almost exclusively appears onstage with an erection.
