Oresteia
by Aeschylus, in a new adaptation by Tom Wright
A flickering light appears on the horizon. A fire. A sign!
After ten years of fighting in Troy - ten years during which Argos has been suspended in time, awaiting word of victory or defeat, awaiting the return of its men – the beacon glows on the horizon signaling a victorious end to the war.
Inside the palace Clytemnestra eagerly awaits the homecoming of her triumphant king Agamemnon. Outwardly her demeanor is one of joy and elation but a dark rage underlies the sweet smiles of jubilation. As her husband sails home Clytemnestra prepares to exact a horrifying revenge on the man who, in order to win this war, sacrificially slit the throat of his own daughter.
A curse has fallen upon the House of Aetreus: blood will be shed, familial bonds betrayed and social order disintegrated before the blight on it is lifted.
This momentous and epic Greek tragedy, adapted and directed by Tom Wright, has been condensed into one heart-stopping evening of theatre. Our permanent ensemble of actors – The Residents – will excavate Aeschylus’ powerful tale of justice and revenge, injecting new life into one of the bedrocks of Western theatrical tradition.
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