After the extraordinary hardships which Medea faces throughout the play, we come across the ending when she “appears in a winged chariot, rising above the house. The bodies of the two children are visible in the chariot.” Interestingly, over the past 1570 lines of the play, the stage directions are almost never this specific or elaborate. Showing that Euripides has literally saved the best for last, perhaps to shamelessly present a big ending, the rising chariot is the epitome of spectacle in this play.
Although there would be no such chariot in the ancient theaters, it is likely that Medea herself would be lifted from the stage level by the deus ex machina (literally, god machine) and the childen’s bodies would be thrust forth on a rolling wagon from the skene in the rear of the orchestra.
By creating such a spectacle, Euripides also highlights the importance of this event: Medea has killed her own childen in order to free them from the terror of the world which has been created for them. Her actions display her insanity, and her relentless pursuit of revenge against Jason.