The Oresteia by Ellen McLaughlin was commissioned and developed by Shakespeare Theatre Company, which in 2019 produced the world premiere, directed by Michael Kahn.

Adapted from the trilogy by Aeschylus
Translated by Ellen McLaughlin
Music Composed by Kamala Sankaram
Directed by Andrew Watkins

N.Y. PREMIERE
Streaming free online June 25 at 7PM through June 29 at 7pm ET
Running time: 2 hours and 40 min

Featuring: Obi Abili, Corey Allen, Helen Carey, Kathleen Chalfant, Kelley Curran, Franchelle Stewart Dorn, Rinde Eckert, Robin Galloway, Ismenia Mendes, Rad Pereira, Reynaldo Piniella, Sophia Skiles, Simone Warren

June 26 at 4pm, moderated by Emily Greenwood (Professor of Classics, Yale University)
June 27 at 2pm, moderated by Drew Lichtenberg (Dramaturg, 2019 Shakespeare Theatre Company production)

The Oresteia is based on the three plays by Aeschylus—Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers and The Eumenides. They are among the oldest plays in the Western canon and are the only surviving trilogy from the ancient Greek theatre.

Due to the epic nature of the story and length of the original text, The Oresteia is rarely performed in its entirety, but McLaughlin’s version of the trilogy has been adapted into one sleek and fast-paced evening of theatre with a modern resonance.

The Oresteia concerns the House of Atreus. The arc of the story begins with Agamemnon’s slaughter of his daughter, an act committed in the name of martial duty and pious sacrifice, but deemed unforgivable by his wife, Clytemnestra—one of the most primal and psychologically complex figures in all of literature. Her act of vengeance in turn sets in motion once more the bloody cycle of that family’s history. The events that follow cast a harsh and penetrating light on any assumptions we like to make about civilization and the nature of human justice.

What does history demand? What is justice? What do we owe each other? The Greeks ask all the toughest questions.