Jermyn Street Theatre. 15 Heroines: The War/The Desert/The Labyrinth: 15 Monologues Adapted from Ovid.

 Jermyn Street Theatre. 15 Heroines: The War/The Desert/The Labyrinth: 15 Monologues Adapted from Ovid. (United Kingdom: Nick Hern Books, 2021). 

London theatre company, Jermyn Street Theatre, commissioned fifteen writers to rewrite new expressions of Ovid’s Heroides as dramatic monologues, with varying success, in my opinion. The show was divided into three themes: The War, The Desert, and The Labyrinth. According to my assessment from reading the playscript, the best are: Briseis as a serial murderess, removing her wedding dress after marrying and killing Achilles, as she escapes her crimes; Deianira as the wife of a famous soccer player, a WAG with revenge on her mind; and Ariadne in Naxos riffing on associations with string, holding the ball of string Theseus left by her while she was sleeping, and cursing him to forget to change the colour of the sails thereby causing his father’s death. 

Performed in November 2020, with an online as well as in-house broadcast, the production was well reviewed, with critics praising the skilful adaptation of the source material and the powerful performances of the cast. The play was widely acclaimed for its celebration of female voices and its exploration of themes of love, loss, and betrayal.

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