AN ILIAD FOR ADELAIDE
In the intimate solo performance that is An Iliad, Tony Award winner Denis O’Hare illuminates the heroism and horror of war by playing an ageless poet who retells the ancient story and never-ending destruction of conflict throughout the ages.
Written by O‘Hare in partnership with Lisa Peterson, who also directs the production, An Iliad is presented by the Adelaide Festival. Set against the backdrop of contemporary wars such as Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, the production blends modern language with translated verse in a powerful lament, accompanied by a live score from double bassist, Brian Ellingsen.
An Iliad is a Homer’s Coat Project produced in association with ArKtype/ Thomas O. Kriegsman. The production is inspired by Robert Fagles’ award-winning contemporary translation of Homer’s Iliad.
This show has an interesting genesis. Says director, Lisa Peterson, ‘It started not long after we went into Iraq. I was looking at war plays and I was thinking that was the subject most important for us to address as theatre makers. A friend of mine who teaches theatre had said she always starts with The Iliad as the first work of dramatic literature, and it really stuck in my brain. So I started reading Robert Fagles’ translation and I just loved it.’
Peterson followed this by researching Homeric tradition and soon realised that The Iliad was the first spoken piece, in fact possibly the first solo performance, even though it was hundreds of years before the invention in Greece of drama as modern audiences know it.
When Denis O’Hare, a long-time friend of Peterson’s and a fellow founding member of creative collective, Homer’s Coat, also became interested, a number of development processes took place over several years. These included Homer’s Coat workshops, typically in which foundational literature is explored. Both O’Hare and Peterson write and edit the pieces they produce together, making for unique, energetic and imaginative performance experiences. This process occurred for An Iliad and it eventually premiered in New York in March, 2012.
Of his many TV roles Denis O’Hare is probably best known as vampire Russell Edgington in True Blood (2010-2012) and Judge Charles Abernathy in Good Wife (2009-2013). Film credits include Milk, 21 Grams and Michael Clayton.
O’Hare has performed in many Broadway and Off Broadway theatre productions and has secured numerous awards, including a 2003 Tony Award for Take Me Out and a 2005 Drama Desk Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical, achieved for his performance in Sweet Charity.
An Iliad has itself received multiple awards, including the Joseph Jefferson Award (Chicago), five Craig Noel Awards (San Diego), Gregory Award (Seattle), Drama Desk nomination (New York), The Obie Award (New York) and The Lucille Lortel Award (New York).
Reviews are uniformly excellent and include:
‘Explosive, altogether breathtaking…Brilliantly meshes past and present calamity with touches of the most caustic dark humour, suddenly shifting into unimaginable pathos.’ – Chicago Sun-Times.
‘Spell-binding…smartly conceived and impressively executed, An Iliad relates an age-old story that resonates with tragic meaning today…’ – New York Times.
If the reviews are any guide An Iliad is theatre not to be missed.
Lesley Reed
Bookings: www.adelaidefestival.com.au or BASS 131 246
Dates: Tuesday March 4-Wednesday March 5, 7.30 pm; Friday March 7-Saturday March 8, 7.30 pm. 1 hour 30 minutes with no interval.
Venue: Dunstan Playhouse, Adelaide Festival Centre.
Tickets: $30-$79.
Images: Denis O’Hare. Photographer: Joan Marcus.
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