The Greeks: The War

The wars of men. The suffering of women. Troy is burning. Adapted from the works of Euripides and Homer, The Greeks: The War is a sharp and powerful re-telling of the events surrounding the fall of Troy. Presented by Melbourne theatre company PMD Productions, this compelling adaptation focuses on the terrible human cost of war, and charts the degeneration of a once heroic society into barbarism and anarchy. The War is the first chapter in a trilogy of works, The Greeks, that sets out to tell the complete story of Ancient Greek mythology by weaving together the collected works of Aeschylus, Euripides, Homer and Sophocles. Described as a “titanic act of dramatic compression”, this piece, adapted by playwright John Barton and translator Kenneth Cavander, premiered at the Royal Shakespeare Company in London in 1980. As powerful as it is ambitious, The War covers the events before, during and after the siege of Troy – from Agamemnon’s sacrifice of his daughter Iphigenia, to Achilles’ destructive rage that all but dooms the Greeks, and the final genocidal decimation of Troy. Founded in 2006, PMD Productions began with a simple goal: to present performances of relevant, often neglected plays, with an ensemble of actors and crew striving to develop their careers in the performing arts. Of their work they state: “there are stories that can't be told without the aid of special effects, and for those we have cinema and television. For the stories that can truly confront, provoke thought, communicate ideas and move audiences to experience profound emotions, there is no better medium than intimate theatre. Ordinary people transform themselves into something extraordinary, and in doing so have the ability to make an audience experience something real, something they can't experience anywhere else, or ever again.” When: 23 August to 8 September 2007 Time: Thursday to Saturday at 8pm, Saturday 1 September also at 2pm Venue: Gasworks Theatre Corner Graham and Pickles Streets, Albert Park Melways: 2J H7 Tickets: $30/$25 Bookings: 9699 3253 OR buy tickets online at http://www.gasworks.org.au