National Theatre: Bacchae at Lowry

Euripides’ 2,400-year-old tragedy Bacchae may be a classic, but this National Theatre production is anything but classical.

Rowdy in all the right ways, this is no stuffy Greek story. In fact there’s rarely been a more modern take on this rip-roaring tale of backstabbing and revenge. In this National Theatre schools’ version, writer Nima Taleghani and director Hannah Hauer-King transform the tragedy into a riotous production, filled with dance, rhythm, and music. 

This version refocuses on the chorus of women, who drive the plot – and the party. Dionysos, the “god of rhyme, wine and a good time”, takes something of a back seat in Taleghani’s retelling. While the Bacchae maraud in the mountains, he’s caught up in his own dysfunctional family Olympics, determined to bring down his cousin, King Pentheus – all to prove to the Bacchae that there’s more to him than partying.

But it’s the women of Thebes who do Dionysos’ dirty work for him. This Bacchae empowers the women who inhabit the story, giving them centre stage. In Euripides’ original, they run wild in the mountains, tearing animals apart with their bare hands. This version isn’t having it. These women may hunt as a pack, but they’re no animals. They’re stage-storming powerhouses, done with watching from the sidelines while the men have all the fun, and ready to cause chaos in Thebes.

Lowry hosts the only public performances of the schools’ tour, on 20 and 21 November – a rare chance to see the National Theatre’s deliciously stylish stamp on Euripides.

For anyone wanting to get into the Greeks, but put off by the ‘C’ word: start here, with this wild reimagining about belonging, power and who gets to party.

Age guidance: 15+