The

Odyssey
HOMER | EMILY WILSON
Adapted by Gregory Keng Strasser
Draft: 7/19/18
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“Hard is the journey,

Hard is the journey,
So many turnings,
And now where am I”
Li Po
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Production History

THE ODYSSEY received a developmental workshop at the Laboratory for Global Performance
and Politics (Artistic Director: Derek Goldman, Managing Director: Jojo Ruffman) at Davis
Performing Arts Center in Washington D.C on June 3rd, 2018. The translation was by Emily
Wilson. The cast was as follows:
(In alphabetical order)
Sebastian Amoruso: Odysseus and others
Linda Bard: Nausicaa, Eurykleia, Calypso, and others
Jordan Friend: Zeus, Cyclops, Menelaos, Antinous, and others
Elise McDonnell: Athena and others
Chloe Phillips: Penelope, Helen, and others
Gregory Keng Strasser: Telemachus and others

THE ODYSSEY received its world premiere at the Brighton Center for the Performing Arts
(Artistic Director: Lindsay Harkins) in Brighton, Michigan. Puppets were designed by Sarah
Norton with additional designs by Gregory Keng Strasser. The set was designed by Jason Sell. The
costumes were designed by Camille Charara. The props were designed by Ken Balazovich. The
production was lit by Abbey Kojima and stage managed by Annika Morrison. Zoha Bharwani was
the associate director. Additional music and lyrics are by Johnny Posada. Maureen Kelleher was the
casting director. The translation was by Emily Wilson. The cast was as follows:
(In alphabetical order)
Skylar Deming: Telemachus and others
Noa Gelb: Eurykleia, Aeolus, and others
Lucas Hardy: Antinous, Phaecian Bard, and others
Harrison Kenum: Odysseus and others
Danielle Peck: Nausicaa, Tiresias, Eidothea, and others
Johnny Posada: Bard, Musician, Noemon
Alexandra Reynolds: Athena and others
Rashna Sarwar: Zeus, Poseidon, Hermes, Alcinous, Cyclops, and others
Jonah Schulte: Menelaos and others
Kylie Ann Stone: Puppet Captain and others
Mason Van Gieson: Penelope, Calypso, and others
Both iterations were adapted and directed by Gregory Keng Strasser
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Information

[Stage directions are in hard brackets]

A ‘/’ mark denotes the start of the next line.

Casting
Muse The Crew
Rhapsode Polyphemus, the
Zeus Cyclops
Athena* Cyclops Neighbors
Telemachus Aeolus
Antinous The Dead
The Suitors Tiresias
Penelope** Odysseus’ Mother
Eurykleia
Menelaos
Helen
Proteus
Calypso**
Hermes
Odysseus
Poseidon
Nausicaa
Alcinous
Phoecians
Puppetry

For this production, special emphasis was placed on shadow puppetry. While some of the
characters above, in performance, were performed in shadow play, the non-speaking puppets are
listed below. For puppetry recommendations, please see Appendix A.
Zeus, Egyptian Pyramids, Eidothea, Proteus, Transformations of Proteus (there are many, but I cut
them down to Lion, Snake, Flowing Water, Leafy Tree), Poseidon, Boat, Helios/Sun, and Helios’
cattle.
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Acknowledgments

First, to the people planted this seed: Katie Pak; Emily Wilson, her agent Simon; and to the board
of the Brighton Center for the Performing Arts who championed this project.
To the world premiere cast, who staged the epic with an ensemble of eleven.
To my mentors – there are many, but mostly to Ellie and Aaron from Avalon International
Academy & Cok In at Yayasan Bali Purnati who filled me with taksu from Balinesian muses; to my
teachers at Michigan; and to the amazing life-changing folks at Rorschach Theatre and the
Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics in Washington D.C. Special shout out to Jenny,
Randy, and Derek.
To my incredible creative team: Sarah, Jason, Camille, Abbey, Ken, and Zoha, with whom this
brainchild would only be a child.
But lastly, and most importantly, to the formidable Lindsay Harkins, whose courage got this play on
stage.
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Part One:
The Telemachy

1. Invocation

RHAPSODE Tell me about a complicated man.

Muse, tell me how he wandered and was lost
when he had wrecked the holy town of Troy,
and where he went, and who he met, the pain
he suffered in the storms at sea, and how
he worked to save his life and bring his men
back home. He failed to keep them safe; poor
fools,
They ate the Sun God’s cattle, and the god
kept them from home. Now goddess, child of
Zeus,
Tell the old story for our modern times.
Find the beginning
[The MUSE seizes the RHAPSODE]
Tell me about a complicated man.
Muse, tell me how he wandered and was lost
when he had wrecked the holy town of Troy,
and where he went, and who he met, the pain
he suffered in the storms at sea, and how
he worked to save his life and bring his men
back home. He failed to keep them safe; poor
fools,
They ate the Sun God’s cattle, and the god
kept them from home. Now goddess, child of
Zeus,
Tell the old story for our modern times.
Find the beginning
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2. Olympus

[ATHENA and ZEUS in Olympus]

ATHENA In the bright hall of Zeus upon Olympus,
the other gods were all at home, and Zeus,
the father of gods and men, made conversation.
He was thinking of fine well-born Aegisthus, who
was killed by Agamemnon’s famous son Orestes.
He told the deathless gods,
ZEUS This is absurd,
That mortals blame the gods! They say we cause
their suffering, but they themselves increase it
by folly.
ATHENA Indeed.
ZEUS So Aegisthus overstepped:
He took the legal wife of Agamemnon
then killed the husband when he came back
home.
ATHENA Yessir.
ZEUS We gods had warned Aegisthus, we sent down
perceptive Hermes to say: “Orestes would grow
up and come back to his home to take revenge.”
Aegisthus would not hear that good advice.
ATHENA Nope
ZEUS Now his death has paid all debts!
ATHENA Father, he did deserve to die. Bring death to all
who act like him!
But I am agonizing about Odysseus and his bad
luck.
For too long he has suffered, with no friends, sea
all around him, out on an island where a goddess
lives.
She holds that poor unhappy man and tries
beguiling him with gentle words to cease all
thoughts of Ithaca; but he longs to see even just
the smoke that rises from his own homeland.
He wants to die.
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[Beat]
You do not even care, Olympian!
Remember how he sacrificed to you on the broad
plain of Troy beside his ships?
So why do you dismiss Odysseus?
ZEUS Daughter! You must be joking, since how could I
forget Odysseus?
He is more sensible than other humans,
and makes more sacrifices to the gods.
But Lord Poseidon rages, unrelenting, because
Odysseus destroyed the eye of godlike
Polyphemus, his own son.
So now Poseidon prevents Odysseus from
reaching home but does not kill him.
ATHENA …
ZEUS Come then, we must plan: how can he get back
home? Poseidon must give up his anger, since he
cannot fight alone against the will of all gods.
ATHENA Great father, if the blessed gods at last will let
Odysseus return back home, then hurry, we must
send our messenger, Hermes the giant-slayer. He
must swoop down to Ogygia right away and tell
the beautiful Calypso we have formed a firm
decision that Odysseus has waited long enough.
He must go home.
I will go to Ithaca to rouse the courage of his son,
and make him call a meeting, and speak out
against the suitors who kill his flocks unstoppably.
I will send him off to Sparta, to seek news about
his father’s journey home, and gain a noble
reputation for himself.
ZEUS Sounds good! [Flashes a thumbs up]
TELEMACHUS With that, she tied her sandals on her feet, the
marvelous golden sandals that she wears to travel
sea and land, as fast as wind.
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3. Telemachus and Mentor

[The suitors ravage the palace of Odysseus, Telemachus stands aside watching the plunder.]
TELEMACHUS Ithaca.
The lordly suitors are sitting on hides of the cows
they killed themselves. Telemachus was sitting
with them, feeling dejected, daydreaming.
In his mind he saw his father
Coming from somewhere, scattering the suitors,
and gaining back his honor, and control of all his
property.
[ATHENA enters, except she is clutching her staff as if she were an old and withered man, Mentor]
ATHENA Hello! Excuse me? Why, this is the house of
Odysseus, is it not?
TELEMACHUS Good evening stranger, and welcome. Be our
guest, come share our dinner, and then tell us
what you need.
Who are you? From what city, and what parents?
Have you been here before? Are you a friend
who visited my father?
ATHENA I am Mentor, the son of wise Anchialus,
Lord of Taphians who love the oar.
I traveled with my ship and my companions
over the wine-dark sea to foreign lands.
Tell me now – are you Odysseus’ son? You are
so tall! I came because they told me your father
was here – but now it seems that gods have
blocked his path back home.
Your handsome face and eyes
resemble his.
TELEMACHUS Dear guest, I will be frank with you. My mother
says that I am his son, but I cannot be sure.
I wish I were the son of someone lucky, who
could grow old at home with all his wealth.
Instead, the most unlucky man alive is said to be
my father.
His white bones may be lying in the rain or sunk
beneath the waves.
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ATHENA But I am sure he is not dead.

The wide sea keeps him trapped upon some
island, captured by fierce men who will not let
him go.
Now I will make a prophecy the gods have given
me. He will not be gone much longer from his
own dear native land. He will devise a means of
getting home. He is resourceful.
[The SUITORS create a ruckus]
ATHENA But now tell me this. Who are these banqueters?
They look so arrogant and self-indulgent.
TELEMACHUS My friend since you have raised the subject, there
was once a time when this house here was doing
well, our future bright, when he was still at home.
All the chiefs and local lords from rocky Ithaca
are courting Mother, wasting our whole house.
She does not turn these awful suitors down, nor
can she end the courting. They keep eating,
spoiling my house – and soon, they will kill me!
ATHENA This is monstrous! You need Odysseus to come
back home and lay his hand on all those
shameless suitors! If only he would come here
now and stand right at the gates, with two spears
in hands in shield and helmet, as when I first saw
him!
TELEMACHUS The gods have cursed us and cast my father into
utter darkness.
The winds have seized him, and he is nameless
and unknown. He left nothing but tears for me. I
do not weep only for him. The gods have given
me so many other troubles.
ATHENA Yes Telemachus, whether he comes home to
take revenge, or not, is with the gods.
But you must consider how best to drive these
suitors from your house. Come, listen carefully to
what I say.
Tomorrow, call the Achaean chiefs to meeting
and tell the suitors – let the gods be witness –
“All of you, go away! To your own homes!”
TELEMACHUS What?! Tell the suitors – you’re mad!
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ATHENA Here is some advice.

Fit out a ship with twenty oars, the best, and go
find out about your long-lost father. Someone
may tell you news, or you may hear a voice from
Zeus, best source of information.
Go to Sparta, visit Menelaus. He came home last
of all the Achaean heroes. If you should hear that
Odysseus is still alive and coming home, put up
with this abuse for one more year.
[beat]
TELEMACHUS I can’t.
ATHENA Telemachus.
TELEMACHUS I can’t
ATHENA You must not stick to childhood;
You are no longer just a little boy.
I see how big and tall you are.
Be brave and win yourself a lasting name.
[Beat]
I must go now, on my speedy ship;
My friends are getting tired of waiting for me.
Remember what I said and heed my words.
TELEMACHUS Dear guest, you were so kind to give me this
fatherly advice. I will remember.
I know that you are eager to be off, but please
enjoy a bath before you go, and take a gift with
you. I want to give you / a precious
ATHENA Do not hold me back now. I must be on my way.
With that, the owl-eyed goddess flew away like a
bird, up through the smoke.
TELEMACHUS A god has been my guest!
[PHEMIOS enters, a crowd forms.]
PHEMIOS [Singing]
Carried by Athena’s will,
Those soldiers stole away
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O’er Poseidon’s spill

Shepherded by eyes of Gray.
From smattered Troy they came
Homecoming abound
Eyes a blaze, limbs a lame
And some who off and drowned.
[PENELOPE enters]
PENELOPE Stop, please Phemios.
[beat]
You know so many songs, enchanting tales of
things that gods and men have done, the deeds
that singers publicize.
Stop this upsetting song that always breaks my
heart, so I can hardly bear my grief.
I miss him all the time – that man, my husband,
whose story is so famous throughout Greece.
TELEMACHUS Mother, no, you must not criticize the loyal bard
for singing as it pleases him to sing.
Poets are not to blame for how things are;
Zeus is; he gives to each as is his will.
Odysseus was not the only one who did not come
back home again from Troy. Many were lost. Go
in and do your work.
It is for men to talk, especially me. I am the
master.
[A beat, PENELOPE exits]
TELEMACHUS [To All:] You suitors, you are taking this too far.
At dawn let us assemble in the square. I have to
tell you this – it is an order. You have to leave my
halls. Go dine elsewhere! Eat your own food or
share between your houses. Or if you think it
easier and better to ruin one man’s wealth, and if
you think that you can get away with it – go on! I
call upon the gods; Zeus will grant vengeance.
You will be punished and destroyed right here.
ANTINOUS Telemachus.
[beat]
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TELEMACHUS Antinous, Son of Eupeithes.

ANTINOUS The gods themselves have taught you such pride,
to talk so big and brash in public!
May Zeus never grant you your true inheritance
which is the throne of Ithaca.
TELEMACHUS Antinous, you will not like this, but I have to say,
I hope Zeus does give me the throne. Do you
deny it is an honorable thing to be king?
There are many other great chiefs in sea-girt
Ithaca, both old and young. I know that. One of
them may seize the throne, now that Odysseus
has died. But I shall be at least the lord of my
own house.
ANTINOUS Telemachus, the gods must choose which of us
will be king of Ithaca. But still, I hope you keep
your own possessions and rule your house.
Now, friend, I want to ask about the stranger.
Where was he from, what country? Did he say?
Does he bring news your father will come home?
[Beat]
How suddenly he darted off, not waiting for us to
meet him. Yet he looked important.
TELEMACHUS My father is not ever coming home. I do not
listen now to any gossip, or forecasts from the
psychics whom my mother invites to visit us. The
stranger was my father’s guest-friend, who rules
the Taphians, the people of the oar.
ANTINOUS Very good. And good night to you, Telemachus.
PHEMIOS [Singing]
Across the winedark sea
Across the burning plains
Slaves to war now free,
Panacea to the pain
Yet some will never know
The day of their homecoming
ATHENA Those were his words, but in his mind, he knew
she was a god. He slept the night there, wrapped
in woolen blankets, planning the journey told him
by Athena.
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4. The Assembly

[TELEMACHUS is dressed by EURYKLEIA]

TELEMACHUS The early Dawn was born; her fingers bloomed.
Odysseus’ well-beloved son jumped up, put on
his clothes, and strapped his sword across his
back. He left the room looking just like a god.
ATHENA Athena poured a heavenly grace upon him.
CRIER Ithacans! Assemble to the center!
[The ensemble litters the square]
TELEMACHUS Hear me, Ithacans!
I am in deep trouble.
I need help for myself. My family has suffered
two disasters. First, I lost my father, who was kind
to you as if you also were his sons. Now, even
worse, my house is being ripped apart; my wealth
will soon be gone! The sons of all the nobles have
shoved inside my house to court my mother,
against her wishes.
[Crying, like a little boy]
They haunt our house day after day and kill our
cows and pigs and good fat goats. They feast, not
caring if they waste it all. I cannot fight against
them; I would be useless. I have no training, but
if I had the power, I would do it! I beg you, by
the goddess who presides in human meetings:
Justice!
[Beat]
ANTINOUS Telemachus, you stuck-up willful little boy. How
dare you try to embarrass and put the blame on
us?
[beat]
Go blame your precious mother! She is cunning.
It is the third year, soon it will be four, that she
has cheated us of what we want. She offers hope
to all, sends note to each, but all the while her
mind moves somewhere else.
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She came up with a special trick: she fixed a

mighty loom inside the palace hall. She said to
us: “Young men, you are my suitors. Since my
husband is dead, I know you want to marry me.
You must be patient; I have worked hard to
weave this winding sheet to bury good Laertes
when he dies. Please let me finish it!”
So every day she wove the mighty cloth, and then
at night, by torchlight, she unwove it. For three
long years her trick beguiled the Greeks.
But when the fourth year’s seasons rolled around,
a woman slave who knew the truth told us. We
caught her there, unraveling the cloth.
This is our answer, so you and all the Greeks
may understand: Dismiss your mother, let her
father tell her to marry anyone his heart desires.
TELEMACHUS I will not.
ANTINOUS We suitors will keep eating up your wealth, as
long as she pursues this plan the gods have put
inside her heart.
TELEMACHUS If you feel upset, you go!
Out of my house! Stop eating all my food!
I will call the deathless gods! May Zeus give
recompense some day for this! You will die here
and nobody will care.
[ANTINOUS and TELEMACHUS confront one another, when suddenly ATHENA interrupts.
As she speaks, everyone looks across the sky – musician plays a note]

ATHENA Then Zeus, whose voice resounds around the

world, sent down two eagles from the mountain
peak.
[ATHENA dons the guise of Mentor again, clutching two feathers.]
Now Ithacans, listen! I speak especially for the
suitors. Disaster rolls their way! Odysseus will not
be absent from his friends for long! Already he is
near and sows the seeds of death for all of them,
and more disaster for many other in bright
Ithaca! It is coming true.
ANTINOUS Old man, be off! Go home and spout your
portents to your children, or it will be worse for
them.
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I can read these omens better than you can.

Many birds go flying in sunlight, and not all are
meaningful.
Odysseus is dead, away from home.
His house will be devoured, and payback will
never come. This meeting is adjourned
[The Ithacans begin to exit]
And Telemachus.
See you at home.
[The suitors exit led by ANTINOUS]
TELEMACHUS [Beat, TELEMACHUS prays]
Just yesterday you came and ordered me to sail
the hazy sea and find out news of my long-absent
father’s journey home. The Greeks are wasting
everything, especially these bullying mean suitors.
What do I do?
[ATHENA assumes MENTOR’s shape]
ATHENA Telemachus.
TELEMACHUS Lord Mentor?
ATHENA You will be brave and thoughtful, if your father’s
forcefulness runs through you. Your journey will
succeed, if you are his.
You will be no coward and no fool. You will
achieve the journey that you seek, and I will go
with you, just like a father.
TELEMACHUS [Beat]
Lord Mentor, I am finished with appeals and
argument.
Go and equip a good swift ship for me. I will go
back home and get provisions. You go through
town call for volunteers to come with us. Select
the best, we will equip and sail fast, far off across
the sea.
[TELEMACHUS exits]
ATHENA But back at the Palace of Odysseus, the suitors
had already begun their rabble.
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5. The Suitors’ Rabble

[ANTINOUS and the SUITORS in the Hall of Odysseus. TELEMACHUS enters]

ANTINOUS Pigheaded Telemachus!
Why not put all your troubles from your heart?
Come eat and drink with me, just as before.
SUITORS Yeah! C’mon! [Ad lib]
TELEMACHUS Antinous, I cannot eat; I have no peace or joy
when I am with you selfish suitors. Is it not
enough that you destroyed my rich inheritance
when I was a little boy?
But now I have grown bigger, and I got advice
from other people, and my heart wells up with
courage.
ANTINOUS What ferocity!
TELEMACHUS I will bring down doom on your heads!
[Beat]
I will go to Sparta. Yes, I will really go there, as a
passenger!
SUITOR A With what ship!?
SUITOR B With what crew!?
[TELEMACHUS exits, the SUITORS cackle]
SUITOR A Oh no! Telemachus is going to kill us!
SUITOR B He will bring supporters from Sparta!
SUITOR C He’s fetching some lethal poisons from Ephyra to
mix up in our wine-bowl and kill us all!
SUITOR A Well who knows, perhaps he will get lost and die,
so far away from all his family – just like his
father.
[The SUITORS roar with laughter. They begin to exit, ANTINOUS lingers just for a moment.]

6. Preparations

[EURYCLEIA and TELEMACHUS in the storeroom.]

TELEMACHUS Quickly, keep the cellar doors tightly locked!
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EURYCLEIA Dear child, whatever put this in your head?

TELEMACHUS Nanny, please pour sweet wine in jugs for me, the
second best one! Pour me some twenty pounds
of fine-milled barley oats. Load up all these
provisions secretly. At nightfall, I will come here
and get them when my mother has gone upstairs
to sleep.
I am leaving for Sparta to learn about my father’s
journey home.
EURYCLEIA Sweet child! What gave you this idea! You are an
only child, and dearly loved! They will plot
against you when you leave, scheming to murder
you and share this wealth. Do not go searching
for danger out on the restless seas –
TELEMACHUS Nanny, you need not worry. Gods have blessed
this plan. But, promise you will not tell Mother
until she notices me gone. Say nothing for twelve
days.
EURYCLEIA I vow by the gods.
ATHENA Meanwhile, resembling Telemachus, Athena
went all through the city, standing by each man,
and urged them to assemble by the ship at night.
She asked Noemon for his speedy ship, he
promised to give it gladly. The sun went down,
and all the streets grew dark. The goddess
dragged the ship into the water.
[As Mentor] Telemachus! Your crew of armored
men is ready at the oar for your departure. Come
on! No time to waste! We must be gone!
TELEMACHUS Thank you, Lord Mentor.
[TELEMACHUS boards the ship, he glances back.]
TELEMACHUS Seize the rigging!
ATHENA Athena called a favorable wind,
TELEMACHUS Ah, pure Zephyr whistling on wine-dark sea.
ATHENA It blew the middle sail; the purple wave was
splashing loudly round the moving keel.
TELEMACHUS I pour libation to the deathless gods, especially to
the bright-eyed child of Zeus.
19

ATHENA The goddess rode the waves and smoothed the

way.
TELEMACHUS All through night till dawn the ship sailed on.

7. Sparta

ATHENA The sun rose on the flawless brimming sea into a

sky all brazen.
TELEMACHUS Here we put in and furl sail. Beach the ship!
[The SAILORS disembark]
Sparta.
ATHENA Do not be shy, Telemachus. You sailed over the
sea to ask about your father, where the earth
hides him, what his fate might be. So hurry now
to King Menelaos.
Learn what advice he has in mind for you.
Remember, you are a child no longer.
[The throne room of MENELAOS.]
MENELAOS Strangers! Welcome. Just as we may hope for
Zeus to keep us safe in future times, I will open
my home to you.
Help yourselves! Enjoy the food! When you have
shared our meal, we will begin to ask you who
you are.
TELEMACHUS [To ATHENA] Dear friend, do you see how
these echoing halls are shining bright with bronze,
and silver, gold and ivory and amber? It is full of
riches as the palace of Zeus on Mount Olympus!
MENELAOS No mortal, my dear boys, can rival Zeus.
Some man may match my wealth; or maybe not.
I suffered for it. I was lost, adrift at sea for eight
long years. I traipsed through Cyprus, Phoenicia,
Egypt, Ethiopia, Sidon and Araby, and Libya.
But while I wandered there accumulating wealth,
someone crept in and killed my brother,
Agamemnon; his own scheming wife betrayed
him. I can take no joy in all my wealth.
Whoever they may be, your fathers have surely
told you how much I have suffered! I sit here in
20

my palace, mourning all who died, and often

weeping. Sometimes tears bring comfort to my
heart, but not for long.
But, young stranger – Shall I conceal my thoughts
or speak?
TELEMACHUS Please.
MENELOAS I feel compelled to say, the sight of you amazes
me. I never saw two people so alike as you and
Telemachus, the son of spirited Odysseus.
When I remember him, I cannot eat or sleep –
Odysseus. His destiny was suffering. We do not
even know if he is still alive – he has been gone
so long.
Odysseus had hands like those, those legs that
hair, that head, that glancing gaze.
TELEMACHUS I…
MENELAOS So the son of my dear friend, who worked so
hard for me, has come here to my house! I
always thought that I would greet that friend with
warmth beyond all other Argives.
TELEMACHUS King Menelaos, son of Atreus,
I came in search of news about my father. My
house is being eaten up; our wealth is ruined. My
whole home is full of men who mean me harm –
my mother’s loutish suitors.
I am begging you, here on my knees, tell me the
dreadful news, if he is dead! Please do not try to
sweeten bitter news from pity; tell me truly if you
saw him, and how he was. If my heroic father
ever helped you at Troy when things were bad,
keep that in mind right now, and tell the truth.
MENELAOS Damn them! Those cowards want to steal the bed
of one whose heart is braver than their own.
Odysseus will bring doom upon those men! May
all their lives be brief, their weddings cursed!
As for your questions, I will not deceive you.
I will not hide a single word I heard from that old
Sea God, Proteus.
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8. Menelaos’ Account

[Egypt]
MENELAOS Although I longed to come back home, away
from Egypt, the gods prevented me, since I had
failed to offer perfect sacrifices. They always
desire obedience.
There is an island out in the sea beside the coast
of Egypt, named Pharos. I was held there for
twenty days by gods. No winds appeared to guide
my ships across the water’s back. All of our
supplies would have been gone, and all our help
but then, a goddess, Eidothea, pitied me -
EIDOTHEA Stranger, are you so foolish that you choose to
give up and take pleasure in your pain? There is
no end in sight; you have been stuck here on this
island for so long. Your men grow weak at heart.
MENELAOS Goddess!
I tell you, I am trapped against my will I must
have sinned against the deathless gods who live in
heaven. Please explain which spirit is blocking me
from going home across the teeming sea. Gods
must know everything.
EIDOTHEA A deathless old sea god haunts this place, named
Proteus of Egypt. He speaks infallibly and knows
the depths of seas and serves Poseidon. If you
can somehow lie in wait and catch him, he will
explain how you can get back home.
MENELAOS I followed her instructions thoroughly. When the
sun hit the midpoint of the sky, the old god
bobbed above the salty water; He took a nap
inside the caves.
With a great shout, I pounced on him and
grabbed him. The old god still remembered all
his tricks, and first became a lion with a mane,
then snake, then flowing water, then a leafy tree.
But we kept holding on: our hearts stood firm. At
last the ancient sorcerer grew tired and then
asked me,
PROTEUS Son of Atreus, What god devised this plan with
you? What do you want from me?
22

MENELAOS Old god, why do you want to throw me off? You

know I have been trapped here on this island for
far too long, with no way out. What spirit stops
my journey? How can I get home?
PROTEUS You should have given Zeus and other gods fine
offerings to speed your journey home across the
wine-dark sea.
MENELAOS Sir, I will do exactly as you say.
But come now, tell me this, and tell me truly, did
all the Greeks sail safely home by ship?
PROTEUS You will grieve to learn it, Laertes’ son, the
Ithacan. I saw him crying, shedding floods of
tears upon Calypso’s island, in her chambers. She
traps him there; he cannot go back home. He has
no boats with oars or crew to row him across the
sea’s broad back to his own land.

9. Mobilized

[Back in the hall of Menelaos]

MENELAOS So ends my story. Come now, stay with me, here
in my palace, until eleven days or twelve have
passed. Then I will send you off with precious
gifts, three horses and a gleaming chariot.
TELEMACHUS Please do not keep me here so long, my lord.
Indeed, I would be glad to stay a year; I would
not even miss my home or parents – You rule
these open meadows, rich in clover, white barley
in wide rows, and wheat and grass. In Ithaca,
there are no fields or racetracks.
Though it is only fit for goats, we love it.
MENELAOS My boy, your words are proof of your good
blood.
ATHENA Meanwhile, outside Odysseus’ house, the suitors
were arrogant as usual.
[Ithaka, outside Odysseus’ palace. ANTINOUS and the SUITORS are gorging themselves.
NOEMON approaches.]
23

NOEMON So do we know, Antinous, or not, whether

Telemachus is coming back from Sparta? He left
with my ship.
[A suitor spits out the wine he has been drinking.]
ATHENA They were furious, and their minds darkened
with anger. Penelope was soon aware of all the
suitors’ secret plots.
[Inside Odysseus’ palace, PENELOPE with EURYKLEIA at her landing]
PENELOPE Why did my son go away? Already I lost my
noble, lionhearted husband. And now the winds
have taken my dear son, and no one told me that
he was setting out. Shame on you! You knew that
he was leaving in that ship! Not one of you came
here to wake me up!
EURYKLEIA Lady, sweetheart, even if you take a sword and
kill me, I will tell the truth. I knew all this. I gave
him what he asked for, bread and sweet wine. He
made me swear an oath not to inform you, so that
you would not cry and spoil your beauty.
Now have a bath, get changed into clean clothes.
Pray to Athena, child of Zeus the King. She may
save him from death. I do not think the blessed
gods despise this family; I trust that there will
always be one to rule this house and rich estate.
ANTINOUS Hurry! Go!
[ANTINOUS and the SUITORS rush past the palace of ODYSSEUS]
EURYKLEIA They’re heading for the docks.
PENELOPE They mean to kill my son before he lands.
[PENELOPE rushes to her altar]
PENELOPE Hear me, Athena, tireless child of Zeus,
remember now and save the son I love. Protect
him from the abuses of those suitors!
[Suddenly, ATHENA appears]
ATHENA Penelope, Are you asleep? And are you still
upset?
PENELOPE Sister!? Why have you come? Your house is far
and you have never visited before.
24

ATHENA Have courage. Let not your heart be troubled or

ATHENA
[PENELOPE exits]
[On board, TELEMACHUS and his crew prepare to launch. ATHENA flies to him, as Mentor,
and whispers into his ear. He nods carefully.]
[Rosy fingered dawn stretches into the sky.]
[The drums of the ship come to life.]
[Dawn spreads her palm upon the clouds.]
[Black out.]
END OF PART ONE
afraid. He has a goddess as his guide – Athena, a
helper many men have prayed to have. She has
great power. Pitying your grief, she sent me here
to tell you all of this.
Know your son is coming home. He has not
wronged the gods.
With that. Athena poured sweet, honeyed sleep
upon her eyes and sent her to bed.
The suitors got on board and sailed across the
water, set on murdering the boy. There is a rocky
island out at sea, in between Ithaca and craggy
Same called Asteris – quite small but with a
harbor to shelter ships, and there they lurked in
ambush.
25

Part Two:
The Odyssey

10. Calypso

[CALYPSO, in a sexy swimsuit, is sunbathing on her island. On her wrist is a very long leash that
stretches off the stage.]
[Beat.]
[HERMES arrives, on a scooter.]
HERMES They don’t pay me enough to do this job.
CALYPSO [Screaming] AHHHHHH! HERMES!!!!
HERMES Hi / Calypso
CALYPSO HERMEYYYY I missed you so much! You and
your golden self, what brings you to my island!?
You rarely ever visit! I have so / much to fill -
HERMES Okay, okay, okay. I’m here on business, Calypso.
CALYPSO Oh. Okay. Yes, I’m sorry!
HERMES So, erm, let’s – please be professional.
Heightened language, okay?
CALYPSO Ah yes, erm
You do not often visit. What do you have in
mind? My heart inclines to help if I can, if it is
fated.
HERMES Zeus ordered me to come – I did not want to.
None can sway or check the will of Zeus.
He says the most unhappy man alive is living
here. Zeus orders you to send him on his way at
once, since it is not his destiny to die here.
CALYPSO Destiny?
HERMES …
CALYPSO You cruel, jealous gods! You bear a grudge
whenever any goddess takes a man to sleep with
as a lover in her bed. Just so the gods who live at
ease were angry when rosy-fingered Dawn took
up Orion, and from her golden throne, chaste
Artemis attacked and killed him with her gentle
arrows. Demeter with cornrows in her hair
26

indulged her own desire, and she made love with

Iasion in triple-furrowed fields – till Zeus found
out, hurled flashing flame and killed him. So
now, you male gods are upset with me for living
with a man. A man I saved!
Zeus pinned his ship and with his flash of
lightning smashed it to pieces. All his friends
were killed out on the wine-dark sea. This man
alone, clutching the keel, was swept by wind and
wave and came here, to my home. I cared for
him and loved him, and I vowed to set him free
from time and death forever.
[Beat]
HERMES No other god can change the will of Zeus.
[Beat]
CALYPSO So let him go, if that is Zeus’ order, across the
barren sea. I will not give an escort for this trip
across the water; I have no ships or rowers.
HERMES But share what you know with him, and gladly
give useful advice so he can safely reach his
home.
[He goes to exit]
Send him now, avoid the wrath of Zeus, do not
enrage him, or one day his rage will hurt you.
Ta ta!
[He rides off]
[CALYPSO, pissed, pulls on her leash, and ODYSSEUS enters.]
CALYPSO Stop looking so forlorn.
ODYSSEUS I’m trying.
CALYPSO Stop grieving, please. You need not waste your
life. I am quite ready to send you off.
[Beat]
ODYSSEUS What?
CALYPSO I’m helping you GO.
ODYSSEUS Go where?
27

CALYPSO Where else? Home. Ithaca. Whatever, let’s get

started on your raft
[Beat]
ODYSSEUS But…why?
CALYPSO You scalawag!
ODYSSEUS Goddess, you have some other scheme in mind,
not my safe passage! You are telling me to cross
this vast and terrifying gulf in just a raft, when
even stable schooners sped on by winds from
Zeus would not succeed?
[beat]
CALYPSO I swear I will not plot more pain for you. I have
made plans for you as I would do for my own
self, if I were in your place. I am not made of
iron; no, my heart is kind and decent. And I pity
you.
[beat]
Does your silence mean you change your mind
and are staying, if so HORRAY OKAY / LET’S
GO drink –
ODYSSEUS No, no, no, no let’s get to work!
[He gets to building]
CALYPSO Do you really want to go back to that home?
[beat]
If you understood how glutted you will be with
suffering before you reach your home, you would
stay here with me and be immortal.
You still wish to see that wife you always pine for.
[beat]
I know my body is better than hers is. I am taller
too. Mortals can never rival the immortals in
beauty.
ODYSSEUS Do not be enraged at me, great goddess. You are
quite right. I know my modest wife Penelope
could never match your beauty. She is human;
you are deathless, ageless. But even so, I want to
go back home.
28

If some god strikes me on the wine-dark sea, I

will endure it. By now I am used to suffering. I
have gone through so much at sea and in the war.
Let this come too.
CALYPSO …Very well.
[They build the ship.
Puppetry: the ship is built and sets sail into the ocean.
It is just Odysseus on a mattress and a bamboo ship.]
CALYPSO The work had taken four days; on the fifth
Calypso let him go. She sent him off with gentle,
lukewarm breezes.

11. The Storm

[The puppet ship sails gaily along the tepid ocean. Suddenly the atmosphere changes, it grows dark.
POSEIDON – a puppet – appears]
POSEIDON This is outrageous!
So it seems the gods have changed their plans
about Odysseus while I was absent! I will goad
him to more misery till he is sick of it.
[A storm erupts, Odysseus enters – he is “sailing” on a mattress using a bamboo stick]
ODYSSEUS More pain? How will it end?
Poseidon whirls the air. Look at those clouds!
[The waves lift Odysseus up and he comes crashing into the floor. They carry him and he seizes the
crags of a rock. ATHENA enters, and she sees Poseidon and dispels his storm. It relents, she
disappears]
ODYSSEUS Unknown god, hear me! How I longed for you!
I have escaped the salt sea and Poseidon. Even
the deathless gods respect a man who is as lost as
I am now. I have gone through so much and
reached your flowing streams. Pity me, lord! I am
your supplicant!
[Giggling is heard off stage.]
Voices!
What now? What will become of me?
If I stay up all wretched night beside this river, the
cruel frost and gentle dew together may finish
29

me. But if I climb the slope to those dark woods

letting sweet sleep take hold of me, wild beasts
may find me and treat me as their prey!
[More giggling]
What is this country I have come to now? I hear
the sound of female voices. Is it nymphs? Or
could this noise I hear be human voices? I have
to try to find out who they are.
[He exits]

12. Laundry Day

[NAUSICAA and her cohort enter carrying fabrics for washing.]

LAUNDRESS Nausicaa, why did you accompany us to the
seaside?
You are never of any mind to do laundry!
NAUSICAA Last night my best friend came to my bedside and
told me.
NAUSICAA & ATHENA Oh, Nausicaa! So lazy! Your mother should have
taught you!
ATHENA Your clothes are lying there in dirty heaps,
though soon you will be married and you will
need a pretty dress to wear, and clothes to give all
your bridesmaids! Surely you will not long remain
unmarried. The best young men here in your
native land already want to court you. So, at
dawn, go ask your father for the cart with mules,
to carry dresses, scarves, and sheets. I will come
and help you, so the work will be done.
NAUSICAA Then Dawn came from her lovely throne and
awoke me. I was amazed, it was like a dream! I
went to daddy and he set up the wagon with big
smooth wheels and I took up the whip and reins
and then the mules were on their way!
LAUNDRESS So you are to be married!? Who is the lucky
man!
[ODYSSEUS enters, he doesn’t look too good.]
ODYSSEUS Excuse me.
30

[The LAUNDRESSES scream, they flock behind NAUSICAA. ATHENA stands behind her,
filling her with courage.]
ODYSSEUS My lady, please!
NAUSICAA Wait girls! Why are you running from this man?
Do you believe he is an enemy?
ODYSSEUS Are you divine or human? If you are some great
goddess from the sky, you look like Zeus’
daughter Artemis – you are as tall and beautiful
as she. But if you live on earth and are a human,
your mother and your father must be lucky. I
have seen no one like you. Never, no one. My
eyes are dazzled when I look at you. I am afraid
to touch your knees. But I am desperate. I came
from Ogygia, and for twenty days storm winds
and waves were driving me adrift, until yesterday
some god washed me up right here. My lady, pity
me. Battered and wrecked, I come to you, you
first – and I know no one else in this whole
country. Show me the town give me some rags to
wear, if you brought any clothes when you came
here.
NAUSICAA Well, stranger, you seem a brave and clever man;
you know that Zeus apportions happiness to
people, to good and bad, each one as he decides.
Your troubles come from him, and you must
bear them. But since you have arrived here in our
land, you will not lack for clothes or anything a
person needs in times of desperation. I will show
you the town. The people here are called
Phaeacians, and I am the daughter of the great
King Alcinous.
All foreigners and beggars come from Zeus, and
any act of kindness is a blessing.
Ladies!
[NAUSICAA and the LAUNDRESSES seize Odysseus and dress him]
ATHENA Athena watched him but did not yet appear to
him, respecting her own brother in his fury
against Odysseus till he reached home.
But still, she accompanied them to the Magical
Kingdom.
31

13. The Magical Kingdom

[Phaecia, outside the halls of Alcinous]

NAUSICAA Here, Mr. Foreigner, this is the house you

wanted me to take you to. You will find them, the
king and queen, inside at dinner. Do not be
scared; go in. The brave succeed in all
adventures, even those who come from countries
far away.
[Alcinous appears at his throne. Odysseus approaches.]
ALCINOUS Nausicaa.
NAUSICAA Daddy!
ALCINOUS Nausicaa, who is this man with you?
[Beat]
ODYSSEUS Lord Alcinous,
I have had many years of pain and loss. I beg
you, and your queen, and these men who feast
here – may the gods bless you in life, and may
you leave your children wealth and honor. Now
help me, please, to get back home, and quickly! I
miss my family. I have been gone so long it hurts.
[He collapses]
NAUSICAA Daddy, you know it is not right to leave a stranger
sitting there on the floor. Make him get up, and
seat him on a silver chair, and order wine to be
poured!
ALCINOUS Stranger,
Where are you from? And who gave you those
clothes?
ODYSSEUS There is an island, far out in the sea, Ogygia.
Calypso, friend to neither gods nor mortals
brought me to her hearth alone when Zeus
scooped up my ship and with bright lightning split
it apart across the wine-dark sea. All of my
comrades, my brave friends, were killed.
I stayed with her for seven years; At last, the
eighth year rolled around and word came down
from Zeus that I must go. She sent me up a well-
32

bound wooden raft and I sailed the sea for

seventeen long days, but more bad luck was
hurled at me. Poseidon roused the winds to
block me, stirred the sea. I sobbed and clung
there going nowhere till my raft was smashed to
pieces by the massive storm.
I washed ashore and I woke, and saw girls playing
on the beach – your daughter, like a goddess. I
prayed to her. She was so kind to me; she gave
me food and wine and let me have these clothes.
Now I have told you the truth, no matter what.
ALCINOUS …
My heart is not the type to feel anger for no good
reason. What a congenial man you are!
[To a servant:]
Go and mix a bowl and serve the wine to all our
guests!
[To Odysseus]
Let me give you a meal, your belly is like a
whining dog. I see your heart is full of sorrow, but
your stomach tells me you must eat and drink.
[Servants and guests enter with food and tables. They sit and enjoy the company]
Come, come, sit beside me!
Hear me, leaders and Chieftains of Phaecia. I will
tell you the promptings of my heart. This
foreigner – I do not know his name – came
wandering from west or east and showed up at
my house. He begs and prays for help to travel
on. Let us assist him, as we have before with
other guests: no visitor has ever been forced to
linger in my house. We always give them safe
passage home. Let us enjoy this feast! I invite you
to welcome him with me! Do not refuse! Now my
poet – perform any song you choose that is
wonderful to hear!
BARD/MUSICIAN The fortress of Troy was a mighty opponent
For years there had been a great war
The siege was unending
The Achaeans were weary
And it seemed there would only be more
33

The troops asked the General

The mighty Odysseus
When will this war ever cease?
He drafted a plan
And the troops got to building
The horse that would conquer for Greece
They filled it with soldiers
And offered their gift
Which the Trojans took into their care
And when darkness fell
The soldiers came out
And they slaughtered the Trojans right there
With the war finally over
The soldiers got ready
To sail back to Ithacan soil
But the gods were unhappy deciding to give
Young Odysseus nothing but toil
He's trapped on an island
Somewhere in the sea
We must wait for him to return
What I'd give to see his face
What I'd give to see their faces
What I'd give to see/
[ODYSSEUS weeps]
ALCINOUS Listen my lords and nobles of Phaecia, the poet
should stop and set aside his ballads since what
he sings does not give pleasure to everyone.
Throughout this heavenly song, our guest has
been in pain, grieving. A heavy burden weighs his
heart.
Stranger, now answer all my questions clearly, not
with evasion;
With what name are you known to your people?
Tell me about your wanderings: describe the
places, the people, and the cities you have seen.
And please explain why you were crying, sobbing
your heart out when you heard him sing.
Did you lose somebody at Troy?
ODYSSEUS Where shall I start? Where can I end?
I am Odysseus, Laertes’ son. I live in Ithaca. It is
a rugged land, but good at raising children. To
34

my eyes, no country could be sweeter. As you

know, Divine Calypso held me in her cave,
wanting to marry me; But she never swayed my
heart since when a man is far from home, living
abroad, there is no sweeter thing than his own
native land and family.
Now let me tell you the trouble Zeus has caused
me on my journey home from Troy.

14. The Cyclops

[ODYSSEUS and his sailors arrive.]

ODYSSEUS On our way back,
The Cloud Lord Zeus hurled North Wind, a
terrible typhoon, and covered up the sea and
earth with fog. Scared for our lives, we hoisted
down the sails and rowed with all our might
towards the shore.
We entered Cyclops country.
What can I say? We were desperate! In our
scouting we discovered there lived a massive man
who shepherded his flocks all by himself. I told
my loyal crew to guard the ship, while I would go
with just twelve chosen men, my favorites.
We soon were at the cave but did not find the
Cyclops. He was pasturing his flocks. We went
inside and looked at everything. We saw his
crates weighed down with cheese, and pens
crammed full of lambs!
CREW MEMBER Let’s quickly drive the kids and lambs out of their
pens and down to our swift ships and sail away!
ODYSSEUS I refuse. I hope to see him and find out if he
would give us gifts. Start a fire and get settled.
CREW MEMBER Are you sure my captain? These beasts – they
have no councils, no common laws.
[As ODYSSEUS speaks, the stomps of the CYCLOPS grow louder. With each beat, people begin
to hop as if the ground were shaking.]

ODYSSEUS You must trust in the universal law, my friend,

that foreign guests are to be treated with kindness
and gifts. And besides! What could he do? There
35

are many of us, and only one of him. Surely we

would overpower the beast if he tried to –
[CYCLOPS enters the fray with a tremendous shudder, everyone collapses to the floor.]
CYCLOPS Strangers! Who are you? Where did you come
from across the watery depths? Are you pirates
who risk their lives at sea to bring disaster to
other people?
ODYSSEUS We are Greeks, come here from Troy. The
winds have swept us off in all directions across
the vast expanse of the sea. Zeus willed it so. We
are proud to be the men of Agamemnon, son of
Atreus, whose fame is greatest under the sky for
sacking that vast city and killing many people.
Now we beg you, here at your knees, to grant a
gift, as is for hosts and guests. Please sir my lord:
respect the gods. We are your suppliants and
Zeus takes care of visitors, guest-friends, and
those in need!
CYCLOPS Well, foreigner, you are a fool, or from some
very distant country. You order me to fear the
gods! My people think nothing of that Zeus with
his big scepter, nor any god: our strength is more
than theirs.
[Beat]
Now, are you going far in that fine ship of yours?
[ODYSSEUS considers]
ODYSSEUS Ship? What ship?
CREW MEMBER He means the one outside –
ODYSSEUS Shut up!
[to the CYCLOPS] Poseidon, the Earth-Shaker,
shipwrecked me at the far end of your island. We
barely managed to survive.
CYCLOPS Aha! My father has made a fool of you mortals.
Do not be forlorn, I shall give you what you ask.
Come, take in a waft of my pot.
[Two crew members wander close to the CYCLOPS and ODYSSEUS immediately senses danger]
ODYSSEUS NO!
[The CYCLOPS seizes the two and they disappear into his jaws. The CYCLOPS smashes their
bodies to the floor and then rips their limbs apart.]
36

ODYSSEUS He took two of my men and knocked them hard

against the ground like puppies, and the floor was
wet with brains. He ripped them limb by limb to
make his meal and then ate them like a lion on
the mountains.
I thought I should get out my sword, go up to
him and thrust right through his torso.
[The CYCLOPS rolls a mighty stone in front of the mouth of the cave]
That would have doomed us all. On second
thought, I realized we were too weak to move the
mighty stone he set in the high doorway. So we
stayed there in misery till dawn.
When her early fingers bloomed, the Cyclops lit
his fire and milked his ewes and drove his fat
flock out. He rolled the boulder out and back
with ease.
CREW MEMBER Captain! What should we do!?
ODYSSEUS Beside the pen there stood a great big club, green
olive wood, which he had cut to dry, to be his
walking stick. I went in and cut from it about a
fathom and gave it to the men and ordered them
to scrape it down.
[The CREW sharpens the pole]
At evening, he drove back his woolly flocks into
the spacious cave.
[Pouring him wine] Here Cyclops! You have
eaten human meat, now drink some wine! I
brought it as a holy offering, so you might pity me
and send me home. But you are in a cruel rage,
beyond what anyone could bear. Do you expect
more guests when you have treated us so rudely?
CYCLOPS [Drinking the wine] Another! And now tell me
your name, so I can give you a present as my
guest. One you will like!
ODYSSEUS Cyclops, you asked my name. I will reveal it; then
you must give the gift you have promised me. My
name is Noman. My friends and family call me
Noman.
CYCLOPS My gift to you: I will eat Noman last.
37

ODYSSEUS Then he collapsed, fell on his back, and lay there,

his massive neck askew. All-conquering sleep
took him.
Now!
[ODYSSEUS and his men drive the spear into his eyes]
CYCLOPS AHHHH!!!!
ODYSSEUS His blood poured out around the stake, and
blazing fire sizzled his lids and brows and fried
the roots.
CYCLOPS YOU MONSTER! AHHH!
[From afar, CYCLOPS 2 appears]
CYCLOPS 2 Polyphemus! What is the matter? Are you badly
hurt? Why are you screaming through the holy
night and keeping us awake?
CYCLOPS My friends! Noman is killing me by tricks, not
force!
CYCLOPS 2 If no man hurts you, then KEEP IT DOWN!
[He exits]
ODYSSEUS Through the night, I was strategizing, hatching
plans, so that my men and I could all survive. I
bound the rams in sets of three and set a man
beneath each middle sheep. When early dawn
revealed her rose-red hands, the rams jumped up
eager for the grass. Though their master was weak
and worn with pain, he felt the back of each ram
as he lined them up – but missed the men tied up
beneath their woolly bellies.
[The men escape as they exit, ODYSSEUS approaches the CYCLOPS]
CYCLOPS Sweet ram, why are you last today to leave the
cave? You are not normally so slow. You grieve
for Master’s eye; that wicked man, helped by his
nasty henchmen got me drunk and blinded me.
Noman will not escape! If only you could talk
like me and tell me where he is skulking in his
fear of me. I would dash his brains out on the
rocks and make them splatter all across the cave!
ODYSSEUS With that, we went outside. I freed myself and
untied my men. We stole his nice fat animals and
ran until we reached the ship.
38

[The CREW assembles, they form the ship and set sail]
So we embarked.
HEY YOU! CYCLOPS! IDIOT! The crew
trapped in your cave did not belong to some poor
weakling. You had it coming! Zeus has paid you
back!
CREW MEMBER Please! Calm down! Why are you being so
insistent and taunting this wild man?
CYCLOPS Come on, let me give you gifts, and ask
Poseidon’s help to get you home. I am his son;
the god is proud to be my father!
ODYSSEUS Cyclops! If any mortal asks you how your eye was
mutilated and made blind, say that Odysseus –
city-sacker, Laertes’ son who lives in Ithaca
destroyed your sight!
[Chasing the ship, he smashes a rock into the
pool. The ship shakes]
CYCLOPS The prophecy! They told me that Odysseus’
hands would make me lose my sight. This
weakling, this little nobody has blinded me.
Poseidon will heal me!
ODYSSEUS If only I could steal your life from you, and send
you down to Hades’ house below, as sure as
nobody will ever heal you, even the god of
earthquakes.
CYCLOPS [Praying]
Listen, Earth-Shaker, Blue-Haired Lord
Poseidon: Acknowledge me your son and be my
father. Grant that Odysseus, the city-sacker, will
never go back home. Or if it is fated that he will
see his family, then let him get there late and with
no honor in pain and lacking ships, and having
caused the death of all his men, and let him find
more trouble in his own house!
[Thunder strike. POSEIDON’s presence looms.]

15. The Bag of Winds

[The Palace of Aeolus]
AEOLUS So you outsmarted the Cyclops?
ODYSSEUS [To the audience:] The Palace of Aeolus.
39

[To AEOLUS:]Everything I said is true.

AEOLUS You’ll forgive me for not totally believing the
“Lord of Lies.”
ODYSSEUS [Shrugs]
AEOLUS Well Odysseus, I can’t say you’re not
entertaining. We’ll send you off on your way with
this. Use it sparingly and be smart: not every man
deserves to get his hand on it.
[AEOLUS’ servant hands ODYSSEUS a bag.]
ODYSSEUS I thank you my friend!
AEOLUS Have a good trip! Don’t let the Blue God catch
you.
[ODYSSEUS returns to the crew]
ODYSSEUS Alright, let’s be off.
[ATHENA appears, clutching Odysseus’ ship model in her hand, she walks across the stage]
CREW 1 What’s that you got there sir?
ODYSSEUS A gift, from the King Aeolus.
CREW 1 Oh.
Nice.
ODYSSEUS Hoo—I am pretty exhausted.
CREW 2 My lord, you’ve been navigating us for nine days
straight! You’ve earned a wink of sleep.
ODYSSEUS Yes, yes…I think I will rest my head, just for a
moment.
[ODYSSEUS sleeps, the bag is left unguarded]
CREW 1 So.
Odysseus got another gift, huh?
CREW 2 Yep.
CREW 3 Looks like it.
CREW 4 Yeah.
[Beat]
CREW 1 Why does everybody seem to like him so much?
Huh? Huh?
40

[Beat]
CREW 4 He smells good.
[Beat]
CREW 1 Let’s open the bag.
ALL CREW [Adlibbing] Sure, yeah, why not?
[They open the bag, instantly a storm erupts sending the ship out to sea]
ODYSSEUS What happened!?
CREW Uh…
ODYSSEUS Where are we?
[Inspecting around]
Well!? What are you all waiting for! Set up camp!
We’ve got to get this figured out.
[Everyone exits. ODYSSEUS looks around.]
No…the towering poplars of Persephone…the
willows adorned with dying fruit…
…Hades.

16. Tiresias
[The ghosts appear, from the front, the blind prophet TIRESIAS enters]
ODYSSEUS Who’s there?
TIRESIAS King under Zeus, Odysseus, adept survivor, why
did you abandon the sun, poor man, to see the
dead and this place without joy?
ODYSSEUS I had come to the abode of Tiresias, the blind
prophet, whose domain was at Hades.
[To TIRESIAS] Great Tiresias, Blessed with
foresight! Steer me back on the path to my home.
How do I return to Ithaca and see my family?
TIRESIAS Odysseus, you think of going home as honey-
sweet, but the gods will make it bitter.
Poseidon will not cease to feel incensed because
you blinded his dear son.
You have to suffer, but you can get home if you
control your urges and your men. Now listen, I
will give you good instructions:
41

Directly east of here you will reach the Sirens,

who bewitch all passersby. If anyone goes near
them in ignorance and listens to their voices, that
man will never travel to his home.
There is no definite choice about which route to
take when you have sailed beyond the Sirens. Let
your heart decide. There are two choices, and the
first goes through vast overhanging rocks. No
human has ever passed there. Beneath, divine
Charybdis sucks black water down three times a
day. Avoid that place when she is swallowing the
water. No one could save you from death then,
even great Poseidon. Taking the second way, you
meet two rocks: Right in the middle lies a murky
cave that faces west toward dark Erebus. There
lives Scylla, howling and barking. She has twelve
dangling legs and six long necks with a gruesome
head on each, and in each face three rows of
crowded teeth, pregnant with death. No sailors
ever pass that way unharmed.
Row fast, and steer your ship alongside Scylla,
since it is better if you lose six men than all of
them.
Finally, turn from the purple depths and sail your
ship towards the island of Thrinacia; there you
will find grazing cows belonging to the god who
sees and hears all things: the Sun God. If you
hurt those cows, I see disaster for your ship and
your men.
ODYSSEUS My god, am I always meant to suffer?
TIRESIAS There is a way to absolve your suffering, man of
twists and turns:
After you arrive home, go far north, take an oar,
to people with no knowledge of the sea. I
prophesy the signs of things to come. When you
meet somebody, a traveler, who calls the thing
you carry on your back a winnowing fan, then fix
that oar in the earth and make fine sacrifices to
Poseidon.
Gentle death will come to you, far from the sea,
of comfortable old age, your people flourishing.
So it will be.
ODYSSEUS Tiresias, I hope the gods spin out this fate for me.
42

TIRESIAS Before you go –

There is someone who would like to see you.
[ODYSSEUS’ MOTHER enters]
MOTHER My child!
ODYSSEUS …Mother!?
MOTHER How did you come here through the darkness
while you were still alive? This place is hard for
living men to see.
ODYSSEUS Is it really you?
MOTHER Have you not yet arrived in Ithaca, nor seen your
wife at home?
ODYSSEUS I was forced. I have not yet come near to Greece,
nor reached my own home country.
Tell me, how was sad death brought upon you?
By long illness?
Tell me about the son I left behind. Is he still
honored as a king?
And tell me what my wife is thinking, and her
plans. Does she stay with our son and focus on
his care, or has the best of the Acheans married
her?
MOTHER She stays firm. Her heart is strong. She is still in
your house. And all her nights are passed in
misery, and days in tears. But no one has usurped
your throne. Telemachus still tends the whole
estate, unharmed – though threatened by his
mother’s suitors.
Old age is not easy. I lied there grieving, full of
sorrow, longing for your return. The goddess did
not shoot me in my home, aiming with gentle
arrows. Nor did sickness suck all the strength out
from my limbs. No, it was missing you, Odysseus,
my sunshine; your sharp mind, and your kind
heart. That took sweet life from me.
ODYSSEUS Mother! No!
[He reaches for her, but she begins to disappear.]
MOTHER Odysseus, leave this wicked place. Find your way
home.
43

ODYSSEUS Mother please! [He reaches for her again, but she
becomes a shadow]
MOTHER Goodbye, my sweet child..
ODYSSEUS NO!
[On his third attempt, he collapses to the floor.]

17. Alcinous’ Hall

[Everything is quiet. Everyone surrounds ODYSSEUS, watching, waiting, spellbound in the

shadowy hall. He begins to weep, ALCINOUS rises.]
ALCINOUS Odysseus,
The earth sustains all different kinds of people.
Many are cheats and thieves, who fashion lies out
of thin air. But when I look at you, I know you
are not in that category. Your story has both grace
and wisdom in it. You sounded like a skillful
poet, telling the sufferings of all the Greeks,
including what you endured yourself.
I know our guest is keen to go back home, but let
him stay till morning. I could listen to you tell
stories all evening. But you need sleep my friend.
You need sleep.
ODYSSEUS Thank you my dear friend.
ALCINOUS Tomorrow, you shall finish this tale. But for now
rest. Home is on the horizon.
[Everyone begins to crawl to bed and sleep. ATHENA tucks ODYSSEUS in and pours the jug
over him.]
ATHENA Seeing this, the hero who had suffered for so long
was happy. Athena poured down sweet honeyed
sleep to shut his eyes so all his painful weariness
could end.

END OF PART TWO

44

Part Three: Homecoming

18. Monster Country

[A SAILOR enters with a bound ODYSSEUS. His ears are stuffed. ATHENA carries the ship
across the stage]
ATHENA Odysseus resumed his story. He heard a strange
sound from across the sea.
[From off-stage, the SIRENS echo delightfully delicious pleas, the MUSICIAN strikes a chord and
they enter.]
SIRENS Hey boys!
ODYSSEUS That sound... that lovely sound...
BARD Well them boyz in trouble now.
When he hear them Sirens singin’:
"Yoo-hoo"
SIRENS Yoo-hoo!
BARD Well you bet yo’self there be some trouble
Well that there Odysseus
Knew mermaids make him devious
So the sailors tie him up and he plug they ears
So they wouldn't lose track again
SIRENS [The sirens improvise statements. The following
are recommendations]
Would you like a sandwich dear?
Oh, let me get that for you!
I would love to do your laundry!
No we didn’t have plans tonight!
Of course you can stay out with the boys to watch
the game!
ODYSSEUS Let me out! Let me out this instant!
BARD When the crew done past the sirens,
They heard a mighty roar
Them sailor boys was terrified
their hands let go of their oars
Said Odysseus to his sailors:
BARD & ODYSSEUS "Fear not that mighty wave!
45

We beat that dumb ol' cyclops who held us in his

cave"
And if he can't stop us, nobody can
BARD Odysseus didn't tell em bout dat several-headed
Scylla
He knew he had to sacrifice six sailors for its
dinna.
Cuz otherwise they'd have to try to risk it with
Charybdis
It was six men or every man
These creatures sure mean bidness!
ODYSSEUS Now, steer the ship away from the wave and head
towards the rock
SAILOR My God, what IS THAT?!
[SCYLLA seizes six men and gobbles them up]
BARD Between a rock and a hard place
That monster country lies
The choice is yours
But in the end you will decide
May the Gods be on your side.

19. The Temptation of the Cattle

[The men arrive on shore, disheartened]
CREW MEMBER Look! This island is ripe with cattle. Thank the
gods – we are saved!
ODYSSEUS [Beat]
My friends. I know how much you have endured.
But listen to me now. Tiresias insisted we must
avoid the island of the Sun. He said dreadful
danger lurks there for us.
CREW MEMBER You are unfair to us, Odysseus. We men have
had no rest or sleep. We are exhausted.
CREW MEMBER 2 At least let us cook our dinner on this island!
CREW MEMBER You order us to drift around all night in our swift
ship across the misty sea.
CREW MEMBER 3 At night, fierce storms rise up and wreck men’s
ships! How can anyone escape disaster if sudden
46

gusts of wind from north or west bring cruel

blasts to break the ship?
CREW MEMBER Let us submit to evening. Let us stay here and
cook food beside the ship. At dawn we can
embark and sail the open sea.
ALL CREW [Adlibbing] Yeah!
ODYSSEUS You force me to yield, since I am one and you
are many. But all of you, swear me a mighty oath.
The herd of cows, or flock of sheep: do not be
fool enough to kill a single animal. Stay clear and
eat our rations.
CREW MEMBER By your command, we swear it. Let’s set up
camp my brothers!
[The crew sets off, leaving ODYSSEUS alone]
ODYSSEUS That night, when the stars were gone, Zeus
roused a blast of wind, an eerie storm. He
covered earth and sea with fog, and darkness fell
down from heaven.
Day after day, we waited for the storm to yield so
we could set out to sea.
Day after day, our food supply dwindled.
When suddenly.
One evening…
They snapped.
[The CREW, ravenous, finds a cow grazing. They descend on it, splintering it apart.]
I heard this from the beautiful Calypso,
That Helios refused to let his light shine across
the world, lest Zeus punished me for their crime.
When we left that island, Zeus made a mass of
dark-blue storm cloud hang above our ship. The
sea grew dark beneath it.
[To his Crew]
Turn back.
CREW MEMBER We’ve come so far, if we go back to that island
we will be trapped there.
47

ODYSSEUS FOOL! Turn back NOW! You have doomed us

all!
CREW MEMBER Doomed us? Doomed us how? By eating one of
the cows? Odysseus, I did not take you for a
coward.
[The ship groans, the waves shift, thunder rolls.]
ODYSSEUS It’s too late.
It is come.
[Thunder crack]
[Black out.]
[In the darkness we hear all sorts of cries, Odysseus’ commands to get them back to shore. A lone
light reveals POSEIDON grinning, satisfied at last in getting revenge against ODYSSEUS.]

21. Ogygia

[ODYSSEUS – alone on the shore – passed out and wet.]

[CALYPSO enters.]
[She walks towards him and inspects him. She strokes his hair and pushes him over and listens to
his heart beat.]

22. The Return Journey

[ODYSSEUS, asleep, is lulled onto the ship by the PHOECIANS as ALCINOUS narrates]
ALCINOUS We spread a sheet and blanket out on the stern-
deck of the hollow ship, so he could sleep there
soundly.
The seething waves of sounding purple sea
rushed round the stern as she sped straight
ahead. The swiftest bird, a hawk, could never
overtake; she sailed so fast, and cleaved the
waves. She bore a man whose mind was like the
gods’, who had endured many heartbreaking
losses, and the pain of war and shipwreck. Now
he slept in peace, and he remembered nothing of
his pain.
We disembarked, and lifted from the ship
Odysseus, wrapped up in sheets and blankets.
The island was shrouded in mist, completely
48

cloaked by fog. We set him on the sand, still fast

asleep, then rowed away back home.
[ODYSSEUS awakens, the land is shrouded in mist.]
ODYSSEUS Where am I now? Those Phaecian lords were
not so trustworthy! They promised that they
would bring me home to Ithaca. They broke
their word and brought me somewhere else.
[ATHENA enters]
ATHENA (in disguise) What ho, outsider!
ODYSSEUS Oh, friend! You are the very first person that I
have met here. Greetings! Please, be kind. I
touch your knees, please help me! What is this
place? An island? Who lives here?
ATHENA Stranger, you must be a foreigner from distant
parts, or foolish, since you ask about this famous
country. Many people know it, from those who
live towards the east under the rising sun, to those
out west in lands of gloomy dusk. This is rough
country, not fit for grazing horses, and not
spacious, but not infertile; corn and wine abound
here. The land is always wet with rain and dew.
There are fine water holes, and it is good for
raising goats and cattle, and the trees are varied.
Foreigner, I think the name of Ithaca is even
known in Troy, a land they say is far away from
Greece.
[Beat]
ODYSSEUS [Odysseus, who had endured so much, so long,
was overjoyed, to hear from her that he was in his
own dear native land.]
[And then]
Yes, erm, I’ve heard of Ithaca, although I come
from distant Crete. I am in exile, on the fields of
Crete I killed Orsilochus, the speedy sprinter,
son of Idomeneus, the king. I had refused to
serve or help his father at Troy; / I led --
ATHENA Odysseus.
ODYSSEUS You know my name? My true name?
ATHENA To outwit you in all your tricks, a person or a god
would need to be an expert at deceit. You clever
49

rascal! So duplicitous, so talented at lying! You

love fiction and tricks so deeply, you refuse to
stop even in your own land.
Yes, both of us are smart. No man can plan and
talk like you and I am known among the gods for
insight and craftiness. You failed to recognize me:
[She drops her disguise]
I am Athena, child of Zeus. I always stand near
you and take care of you, in all your hardships. I
made sure that you were welcomed by the
Phaecians. I have come here now to weave a plan
with you.
ODYSSEUS Goddess! Even the smartest man may find it hard
to recognize you. You disguise yourself so many
ways.
Tell me the truth, Goddess. Is this my own dear
home?
ATHENA But, of course!
ODYSSEUS The gods dispersed our fleet. I did not see you
on board my ship, daughter of Zeus. You gave
me no protection.
Lost and confused, I waited for the gods to free
me from my pain.
ATHENA I did not want conflict with my father’s brother,
Poseidon, who resented you because you blinded
his beloved son.
For my part, I have never doubted. I felt sure in
my heart you would get home. Now I will show
you Ithaca, so you believe. This is the bay of
Phorcys, ancient sea god, and at the head there is
an olive tree with long leaves, and nearby the
shady cave sacred to nymphs called Nereids, to
whom you sacrificed so many hundred cattle.
And here is Neriton, the wooded mountain.
[ATHENA suspends the mist, letting in the sunlight. ODYSSEUS is floored. He collapses into her
and lifts his arms and prays. He kisses the ground.]
ATHENA Great king, Laertes’ son, master of plots and
plans, Odysseus. Think how to strike the suitors.
For three years they have been lording in your
house and courting your godlike wife with gifts.
50

ODYSSEUS I would have died like Agamemnon in my own

house, if you had not explained exactly how
things stand. So, goddess, now weave me a
strategy to pay them back.
ATHENA Since you have arrived home, I have cloaked you
in old age – you appear as an elderly grandfather.
It is the perfect disguise to infiltrate your home.
ODYSSEUS Excellent!
Athena – Stand by me, give me the courage and drive to fight as when I broke the shining crown of
Troy. If you join me with that zeal and help me,
goddess-queen, I could do battle against three
hundred men at once.
ATHENA All in time, Odysseus. Now, it is time you met
someone.
ODYSSEUS Who?
ATHENA Your son.
TELEMACHUS [off] Mentor? Mentor!
[TELEMACHUS enters]
TELEMACHUS Mentor! There you are.
Who is this stranger with you, grandpa?
ATHENA He is from Crete. He says he wandered, lost,
through many towns – so some god spun his fate.
He is all yours, your suppliant to treat however
you desire.
TELEMACHUS This news of yours, Mentor is very worrying to
me. How can I invite him to my house? I am too
young to fight back with my fists if someone picks
a fight with me. I will not let him go to meet the
suitors; they are much too violent. I would be
mortified if they abused him.
ODYSSEUS My friend, it is my duty to speak out when I hear
the dreadful things those suitors have been doing
in your house, against your will; it breaks my
heart. You are a good man. Tell me, did you
choose to let them bully you? Have the Ithacans
been turned against you by some god? If only I
had youth to match my will! I wish I were the son
of great Odysseus – or that I were the man
himself come home from wandering. We can still
hope.
51

TELEMACHUS There are so many cruel invaders, since all the

toughest men from all the islands and all those
who command in rocky Ithaca, have come to
court my mother, wasting all my wealth. They
keep eating, consuming my whole house, and
soon they may destroy me too. These things lie
with the gods.
Now grandpa, you must hurry to the queen and
tell her I am safe back home from Sparta
ATHENA [To ODYSSEUS]
Great strategist, it is time for your son to know
the truth; together you have to plan how you will
kill the suitors. Then both of you go into town. I
will join you there soon myself: indeed I am
itching to fight.
[ATHENA uncloaks ODYSSEUS, she exits]
TELEMACHUS Stranger, you look so different from before. Your
clothes, your skin – I think that you must be
some god who has descended from the sky.
Be kind to us, and we will sacrifice, and give you
golden treasures. Pity us!
ODYSSEUS I am no god.
[Beat]
I am your father,
The same man you mourn.
It is because of me these brutal men are hurting
you so badly.
[Beat]
TELEMACHUS No, you are not Odysseus, my father; some god
must have cast a spell to cause me further pain.
No mortal man could manage such a thing by his
own wits, becoming old and young again – You
certainly were old just now, and wearing those
dirty rags. Now you look like a god.
ODYSSEUS No, Telemachus, no other is on his way.
Athena did it – the way I looked. The goddess
can transform me as she likes. Sometimes a
homeless beggar, then she makes me look like a
young man wearing princely clothes.
52

You know her well. She was your mentor. She

stuck by your side when she could not have been
there for me.
She loved you like a father could only love his
son.
I am Odysseus.
I suffered terribly, and I was lost, but after twenty
years, I have come home.
[Beat]
TELEMACHUS Odysseus…
[He touches ODYSSEUS’ face. He can see his
own. He begins to cry. They embrace.]
Father.

23. The Beggar

[The palace of Odysseus. ANTINOUS enters with a suitor, enraged. PENELOPE lurks near]
ANTINOUS The journey of this upstart boy succeeded. I was
sure that he would fail. How amazing! The gods
have saved this child from death! For days our
scouts took turns to watch from windy cliffs. We
need to make new plans to murder him. He must
not get away. He will obstruct our courtship if he
lives. He will turn the people against us!
PENELOPE You are a brute! A sneak! A criminal! The
people say you are the smartest boy of all those
your own age on Ithaca. It is not true. You are
insane! How could you devise a plan to kill
Telemachus? Have you forgotten that your father
came here, running in terror from the Ithacans
who were enraged because he joined the pirates
of Taphos? So, the Ithacans were eager to kill
him, rip his heart out, and devour his wealth.
Odysseus protected him! Now you consume your
benefactor’s wealth, and court his wife, and try to
kill his son. I tell you stop!
ANTINOUS Penelope you need not worry. Put all this from
your mind. There is no man and never will be
who can harm your boy while I am still alive on
this earth. I swear to you, if someone tries, my
sword will spill blood. Telemachus is now the
53

man I love the most in all the world. The boy is

in no danger, not from us – there is no help for
death brought by the gods.
[TELEMACHUS and ODYSSEUS enter]
TELEMACHUS Antinous, you are a lord, but what you say is
trash. You are always picking a fight and goading
on the others.
ANTINOUS Why! It is my friend, back so soon from your
trip?
TELEMACHUS Aw!!! You care for me so nicely, like a father!
ODYSSEUS So you are the one called Antinous!
You must be the best of all the Greeks. You look
like royalty, so you should give more food than
all the rest, and I will make you known
throughout the world. I used to be a rich man,
with a palace / my slaves -
ANTINOUS Why did you bring this man here? Do we not
have already plenty of homeless people coming
through here to spoil our feasts? Is it not bad
enough that they crowd round and eat your
master’s wealth? You had to ask this other one as
well? Force him out!
TELEMACHUS May no god make that happen! Go to him and
give him something; I can spare the food. Go on,
I tell you! You should pay no heed to Mother or
the other household slaves belonging to my
father. You were not concerned about them
anyway. You want to gorge yourself, not share
with other people.
ANTINOUS What nasty temper!
[To ODYSSEUS]
And what god imposed this pest to spoil our
feast? Stay over there, not near my table. Get lost!
ODYSSEUS You handsome idiot!
You would not give a grain of salt from your own
house. You sit enjoying someone else’s food, and
yet you will not give a crumb from this great
banquet to me.
54

ANTINOUS That does it! You insult me? You lost the chance
to leave with dignity!
PENELOPE ENOUGH! Everyone out.
[They all go]
Except you.
[ODYSSEUS turns back]
Telemachus, bring out a chair so this stranger can
sit and talk with me. I want to ask him some
questions.
[TELEMACHUS does so]

24. The Queen and the Beggar

PENELOPE Stranger, where is your home town?

ODYSSEUS You have the right to question me, but do not ask
about my family or my native land. The memory
will fill my heart with pain. I am a man of sorrow.
PENELOPE Please sir. I am searching for someone.
I suffer dreadfully; some god has ruined me. The
lords of all the islands are courting me – though I
do not want them to! – and spoiling my house. I
miss my husband, Odysseus; my heart is melting.
The suitors want to push me into marriage, but I
spin schemes. I said to all my suitors, “Although
Odysseus is dead, postpone requests for marriage
till I finish weaving this sheet to shroud.” They
acquiesced.
By day I wove the web, and in the night by
torchlight, I unwove it. I tricked them for three
long years, but then, in the fourth year, with help
from my own fickle, doglike slave girls, they came
and caught me at it.
I have no more ideas. I cannot fend off a
marriage anymore.
If you have any information on Odysseus, please
tell me.
[Beat]
I am sorry to have bothered / you
55

ODYSSEUS In Crete.
PENELOPE Hm?
ODYSSEUS I saw Odysseus, and gave him guest-gifts. A storm
had driven him off course at Malea and carried
him to Crete. Those noble Greeks stayed for
twelve days; a mighty north wind trapped them.
But on the thirteenth day, the wind died down;
they sailed away.
PENELOPE Describe his clothes.
ODYSSEUS What?
PENELOPE What he looked like, and his men.
ODYSSEUS My lady, that would be hard to say – his visit was
so long ago. It has been twenty years. But I will
tell the image in my mind: King Odysseus wore a
purple cloak, held fastened by a golden brooch
with double pins that was elaborately engraved. In
its front paws a dog held down a struggling
dappled fawn.
PENELOPE [Crying] I gave those clothes to him that you
describe.
ODYSSEUS Your majesty, Odysseus’ wife –
Stop ruining your pretty skin with tears and
grieving for your husband, brokenhearted.
I do not blame you: any woman would mourn for
a husband by whom she had children, even if he
were not the kind of man they say your husband
was – a godlike hero.
I heard Odysseus is coming home. This very
lunar month, between the waning and the waxing
moon Odysseus will come.
[Beat]
PENELOPE Well stranger, I do hope you are right. If so, I
would reward you at once with such warm
generosity.
You will lie in this house tonight; spread blankets
on the floor. Tomorrow is another banquet.
ODYSSEUS The last banquet.
PENELOPE Hm?
56

ODYSSEUS The last banquet. The suitors will be no more.

Odysseus is returning.
PENELOPE Goodnight.
[They exit]

25. The Test of the Bow

[ATHENA enters]
ATHENA With glinting eyes, Athena put a thought into the
mind of wise Penelope.
PENELOPE [Picking up the bow]
The curving bow and deadly arrows, given by
Iphitus, the godlike man in Messenia. When
Iphitus first met Odysseus, he gave this bow to
him inherited from his own father. Odysseus gave
Iphitus a sword and spear, to mark their bond,
but Iphitus was dead before the friends could visit
one another’s houses. So, when Odysseus’ black
fleet sailed to war, he did not take the bow, but
stored it in his own house, to use in Ithaca in
memory of his friend.
ATHENA With your muscular, firm hand…
PENELOPE It is time.
[PENELOPE bursts into the hall where the SUITORS are]
PENELOPE Now listen, lords. You keep on coming to this
house every day, to eat and drink, wasting the
wealth of someone who has been away too long.
Your motives are no secret. You want to marry
me. I am the prize.
So, I will set a contest. This great bow belonged
to godlike King Odysseus. If anyone can grasp it
in his hands and string it easily, and shoot
through all twelve axes, I will marry him.
ANTINOUS Leave us suitors here to try the deadly contest of
the bow. I think it will be difficult; not one of us
can match Odysseus. I saw him once in
childhood, and I still remember him.
57

TELEMACHUS Well! Come on you suitors. You want this prize –

a woman unlike any in holy Pylos, Argos, or
Mycenae, or here in Ithaca on the mainland.
No woman in Achaea is like her.
Very well. I will try myself. If I succeed in
stringing it and shooting all through, I will no
longer mind if Mother goes off with someone
else and leaves me here. Success would prove me
man enough to carry my father’s arms.
[TELEMACHUS seizes the bow and tries to string it three times, failing each time. ODYSSEUS
shakes his head and stops him. The SUITORS shriek with laughter]
Ugh! It seems that I will always be too weak and
useless. Or perhaps I am too young and
inexperienced at fighting in self-defense when
someone starts a quarrel. You all are stronger
than I am. You try, and we can end the contest.
ANTINOUS Now, friends, from left to right, beginning with
the man next to the wine-slave!
[A SUITOR comes forward, grasps the bow, tries to string it and fails.]
SUITOR My friends, I cannot do it. Someone else should
have a turn. This bow will take away courage, life-
force, and energy from many noble young men!
ANTINOUS My goodness! You cannot string the bow, so you
are claiming that it will take the life from proper
men. You surely were not born for archery. The
rest of us are actual warriors; we will soon string
this bow. Give it to me!
[ANTINOUS tries, fails]
ANTINOUS This is disastrous! For all of us! I do not even
mind so much about the marriage. There are lots
of other women on Ithaca, and in other cities.
But that we should be proven so much weaker
than King Odysseus, that we should fail to string
his bow! Our deep humiliation will be well-
known for many years to come.
[ODYSSEUS stands]
ODYSSEUS Now hear me, suitors of the Queen;
Let me reveal the promptings of my heart.
Handsome suitors and Lord Antinous: I ask you
specially, because you spoke so well: now set the
58

bow aside. At dawn, the gods will choose the

victor and give him success. For now, give me the
polished bow, so I can try my strength and find
out if my hand still has the suppleness and vigor
of my youth, or if it has been lost in all my years
of homelessness and poverty.
ANTINOUS Foreigner! You fool! Are you not grateful that we
let you stay here and eat with noblemen like us,
and share our feast, and hear us talk? No other
beggars can hear our conversation. This good
wine has made you drunk. It does have that effect
on those who gulp and fail to pace themselves.
PENELOPE No Antinous, it is not right to disrespect a guest
Telemachus has welcomed to this house.
ANTINOUS But we would feel ashamed if some rude person
said, “Those men are weak! They court a fighter’s
wife but cannot string his bow! Some random
beggar has shown up and strung it easily.” We
will be humiliated! /
PENELOPE People who waste the riches of a king have lost
their dignity. Why fuss at this?
The stranger is quite tall and muscular; his father
must be noble. Go on, give him the bow and let
us watch!
TELEMACHUS No mother, no one has a better right than I to
give the bow to anyone or to refuse it. Go up and
work with loom and distaff; tell your girls the
same. Lock the doors.
PENELOPE Telemachus?
TELEMACHUS Lock. The. Doors.
[He is trying to tell her something. She
understands.]
[ODYSSEUS receives the bow. ATHENA proceeds to lock the doors to the hall.]
ATHENA The doors into the feast-hall were locked. The
outer gates were bolted.
ANTINOUS [RE: ODYSSEUS] He stares at it as if he were an
expert in bows! He acts the part! See how this
pitiful migrant fingers it!
ATHENA After examining the mighty bow carefully, inch by
inch – as easily as an experienced musician
59

stretches a sheep-gut string around a lyre’s peg

and makes it fast – Odysseus, with ease, strung
the great bow.
[He held it in his right hand and plucked the string, which sang like a swallow-song.]
[ZEUS makes the thunder rumble. ODYSSEUS picks up an arrow and ATHENA sends it flying
through the twelve axe-heads]

26. The Death of the Suitors

ODYSSEUS Dogs!
So you thought I would not come back home
from Troy? You fleeced my house, and raped
my slave girls, and you flirted with my wife while I
am still alive! You did not fear the gods who live
in heaven, and you thought no man would ever
come to take revenge. Playtime is over. Now you
are trapped in the snares of death.
ATHENA Odysseus stood at one end of the hall with his
son, and Athena at the other.
The slaughter began.
[One by one, the suitors are slaughtered]

27. The Olive Tree Bed

[EURYKLEIA enters PENELOPE’s room]

EURYKLEIA Dear child, wake up and see! At long last you
have got your wish come true! Odysseus has
come!
[TELEMACHUS and ODYSSEUS enter]
PENELOPE Do not start gloating. As you know, my son and I
would be delighted if he came. We all would.
However, what you say cannot be true. My
Odysseus has lost his home, and far away from
Greece he lost his life.
TELEMACHUS Mother! Cruel, heartless mother! Why are you
doing this rejecting father? Why do you not go
over, sit beside him, and talk to him?
[ODYSSEUS raises his hand to TELEMACHUS]
60

ODYSSEUS Penelope.
PENELOPE If this is really you, if my Odysseus has come
back home, we have our ways to recognize each
other, through secret signs known only to us two.
ODYSSEUS [To: TELEMACHUS] Take your nanny, wash
and change your clothes. Clean up the hall.
TELEMACHUS Yes father.
[TELEMACHUS and EURYKLEIA exit.]
[Beat]
ODYSSEUS Extraordinary woman!
The gods have given you the hardest heart. No
other wife would so reject a husband who had
been suffering for twenty years and finally come
home.
PENELOPE You extraordinary man!
I am not acting proud or underplaying this big
event; yet I am not surprised at how you look.
You looked like this the day your long oars sailed
away from Ithaca.
Eurykleia will make the bed for you outside the
room you built yourself. She’ll pull out the bed
stead and spread quilts and blankets on it.
ODYSSEUS [Furious]
Woman! Your words have cut my heart! Who
moved my bed? It would be difficult for even a
master craftsman. No man, however young and
strong, could pry it out. I made it, no one else.
Inside the court there grew an olive tree with
delicate long leaves, full-grown and green, as
sturdy as a pillar, and I built the room around it. I
packed stones together and fixed a roof and fitted
doors. At last, I trimmed the olive tree and used
my bronze to cut the branches off from root to
tip and planed it down and skillfully transformed
the trunk into a bedpost. Now I have told the
secret trick, the token. But woman, wife. I do not
know if someone - a man - has cut the olive trunk
and moved my bed, or if it is / still safe –
PENELOPE [Embracing him]
61

Do not be angry at me now, Odysseus! In every

other way, you are a very understanding man.
The gods have made us suffer: They refused to
let us stay tough and enjoy our youth until we
reached the edge of age together. Please forgive
me, do not keep bearing a grudge because when I
first saw you, I would not welcome you
immediately. I felt a constant dread that some
bad man would fool me with his lies.
Now you have told the story of our bed, the
secret no other mortal knows, except yourself
and me.
You made my stubborn heart believe in you.
[Lights begin to fade, ATHENA steps to the forefront]
ATHENA He held his love, his faithful wife, and wept. They
would have wept until the rosy Dawn began to
touch the sky but shining-eyed Athena
intervened. She held night back, restraining
golden Dawn beside the Ocean, and would not
let her yoke her swift young colts, Shining and
Bright.
[It is revealed that ATHENA is speaking to ZEUS]
ZEUS Marvelous, marvelous work Athena!
ATHENA Peace has been restored to Ithaca. The factions
have ceased their rabbles, and Odysseus, again,
rules his house.
ZEUS And Telemachus?
ATHENA Each day, he is excited and renewed. He has
grown so fast! He looks like his father –
handsome, a man, godlike. He is still young, but
Odysseus has left him a great task.
ZEUS And what is that?
ATHENA To run his home in his absence.
ZEUS Absence? Odysseus has left again!? He only
came back home!
ATHENA Yes, but this journey is far shorter. It is the end,
of the odyssey. He has one more task to fulfill.

28. Epilogue – The Winnowing Fan

62

[An unknown land. Three CHILDREN are playing. ODYSSEUS enters, with him is a great oar
stretched across his back.]
ODYSSEUS Excuse me, my friends. What land is this?
I’ve been walking west for days, and I fear that
I’ve lost all sight of the ocean. You must forgive
me if I am forlorn, for I love the seaways.
CHILD The sea! The sea! Just like from the story!
CHILD 2 How I wish I could see the sea!
CHILD 3 And what’s that upon your back sir?
CHILD Yes! Is that a winnowing fan?
ODYSSEUS [Staring at them both in disbelief. Suddenly he
plants the oar into the ground]
[Black out]
THE END
63

Appendix A: Directorial Notes

This appendix serves as a record of how the BCPA iteration of The Odyssey was staged.
I. DESIGN
In preproduction, the major references I used with my design team and my own directorial
approach came in the form of paintings, dance pieces, and ancient Greek artifacts. I was most
inspired by Pina Bausch’s Orpheus and Eurydice as well as Camille A. Brown’s City of Rain. For
locale, I referred to two of Thomas Cole’s gorgeous series, The Voyage of Life and The Course of
Empire. Ithaca, “rocky Ithaca” was born from the beginning and ending images in the latter series,
whereas Sparta and Phaecia were referenced in the middle image. Phaecia was further fleshed out
by research images from Venice, Italy and Ubud, Indonesia.
Much of the artistic decisions were dictated by the meager budget we were given. I love
metatheatricality, but I’m often bound to it because I direct a lot epic work on no money. I knew
several common themes between all the poem’s locations: they all were strongly influenced by
maritime culture, most of them had an extremely unique and distinct sociology, and that poem
really loved ordinary objects – chairs and beds above all. Constant references to “sweet honeyed
sleep” and dawn whose “blossoming fingers” meant that night and day had to be clear characters in
the show.
Thus, several decisions were taken to ensure ease of production. I am proud to say the show
transitioned seamlessly, almost effortlessly between scenes without any need for blackout with some
exceptions. All tools were virtually eliminated save bamboo poles. These poles were versatile: they
served as boat oars, spears, swords, walking sticks, instruments, and the foundations of architecture.
All players received one bentwood chair which, when compiled en masse, served as the body of the
ship or the hall of a king. My favorite use of the chairs was during the storm when they were lifted
above the actors’ heads and made to drift across the stage like flotsam torn asunder. Finally, all
actors were given a sarong – often bright and vivid but united in a common color. These sarongs
became crucial in creating individualized identities: the Phaecians wore them as skirts and scarves
to demonstrate their carefree, colorful, beachy way of existence. Their billowy, windy quality made
them ideal instruments in orchestrating wind and water. They were used for many other things, but
their primary purpose was in versatility so to name them all would be in vain.
The scenic design was deceivingly sparse. At the far upstage portion of house, before the cyc, stood
a great wall. Constructed of three planes, the wall was painted to evoke several different images: the
bamboo poles themselves, towering pillars of rock, the bindings of books, and mountains. The wall
stood 50 feet across a 55-foot proscenium stage, its edges shrouded by border curtains to allude to
its immense size. Hung on five battens were five massive billowing sheets of muslin which were
dropped with ease. Each muslin bore a PVC pipe sewn into the bottom to hold it in place. The
muslin, grand and massive, served as ship sails, tapestries, waterfalls, storm clouds, and perhaps
even the interior walls of buildings. We bought them in off-white so that the yellowed color could
evoke age, but also so they could still be lit and recolored. The most important use of the muslins
were in providing screens for shadow puppetry. An actor would hold the puppet behind the screen
as the speaking actor would light the puppet from behind with an LED flashlight. A large wooden
staircase on wheels could be moved and stopped at will.
64

The puppets, all of which I meticulously carved from foam core with an X-Acto knife, stood in a
holder made of wood that was nailed to the upstage wall. They remained in plain-sight of the
audience and each figurine was removed after their use.
I touched on costumes and props earlier, but there were several distinct pieces I’d like to mention:
Camille, the costume designer, ensured every actor a base outfit that could be built upon. The
commonalities between every base outfit included a pair of torn pants that were cut off at the calf.
All actors, save actors who played gods, were barefoot. Her color palette matched, and often
complimented, our upstage wall. For suitors, the actors added jackets and walked with
hypermasculine, fraternal alignment. For Phaecians, the actors added a colorful sarong and flowers
in their hair. For sailors, the actors remained in their base outfits. Camille also provided nine
additional blue, purple sarongs that could be used as waves and wind in addition as costumes.
Several props that I felt we needed: a wooden longbow, a toy model ship, several baskets and bags,
and rope. The bow was compulsory for the stringing sequence. Using the model ship, I could
create “long-range” shots. Often, Athena would carry the ship to denote that she was “sailing”
alongside them as their protector. Finally, we had over twenty sarongs and numerous bed sheets
and fabrics that needed storage. The laundry baskets served as a great way to hold them while still
evoking pastoral/city scenes. It was also a convenient way to hide more important props for quick
changes.
II. STAGING
There are several moments I’d like to highlight.
Invocation
The beginning of every story is often the most important part of the play for me. I wanted pay
respect to the oral tradition of the poem which is that it was always meant to be heard, not read. As
the audience trickled in, an actor, whose main track is Athena but in this moment is a Muse, was on
stage sleeping upon a mattress at center surrounded by sarongs. At the top of show, even before the
lights went to half, my actor playing Odysseus walked onto the stage and seized a copy of Emily
Wilson’s translation and began to read it. He’d read it half-heartedly, but by the end of his speech
he’d realize he was intrigued by what the poem had to say. Up stage, the sleeping Muse awakens.
She sits up, realizing what is happening, and as she does the lights darken plunging the theatre from
an empty space into the world of the play. This moment is the conduit, the threshold of experience.
The Muse, undetected, seizes the actor and pulls him into an erotic, almost convulsive possession.
She manipulates his body like a puppet, whispering the invocation into his ear. He drops the book,
no longer needing it, reciting the text from memorization – he’s known it all this time. And by the
end of the stanza: “Find the beginning” the space is completely transformed.
Up stage of him, the cast arrives, picking up the sarongs on the floor and clothing themselves in
different archetypes. It’s stunning to see how many different characters can be made from just a
body and a piece of cloth. The actor playing Odysseus stares upstage and goes out of the light, he
just witnesses the entire cast becoming every character that Odysseus will encounter on his journey.
In the last moment of this tableau, the muse dons a pair of golden laurels, finishing her
transformation. Athena, I should mention, is sleeping in her costume piece: a long translucent scarf
that looks like a blanket from afar. She wears it as a hood and scarf, using the piece to become
“invisible” or transform her identity throughout the play.
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The Telemachy
The Telemachy is probably my favorite part of The Odyssey, for reasons that are elaborated upon
in Appendix B. To denote the numerous locations (Mount Olympus, hall of Odysseus, town
square, cellar, Sparta, and ocean) we had to be very speedy and covert about the transitions. The
first item of note is a giant staircase resting on casters. It lived on stage left, creating the interior of
the hall. When we first arrive in Ithaca, as Telemachus narrates, the suitors are rolled onto stage
standing atop the staircase denoting their immediate presence within Odysseus’ home. Atop the
staircase, lit in a dim pool of spotlight, is Penelope, who stares off upstage, into the ocean.
Later, the staircase moves center where it becomes a podium. Telemachus stands atop it beckoning
to the village people below. I realize, dramaturgically, this would be the opposite of how most
gatherings were conducted. Greek ampitheatres have the playing area as the lowest part of the
theatre space, but from a character arc perspective it was to show Telemachus at the height of his
feigned bravery. The staircase would remain onstage and become the stairs inside the cellar where
the young prince would meet his nanny, Eurykleia. Telemachus tries to go upstairs, but she seizes
him and brings him back down to beg him not to go. This location change was accomplished with a
trick of light: the stage instantly went dark and the characters were lit with a blue/gray pool.
Sparta was distinct from the rest of the locations in that it had no major pieces on stage. The
ensemble stood at upstage left, like soldiers, atop their chairs and clutching bamboo poles. They
puffed their chests a la Zach Snyder and kept their attention forward. The hall was bathed in golden
stage light, and blue and purple paint of the backwall glistened like gems (“Dear friend, do you see
how these echoing halls are shining bright with bronze, and silver, gold and ivory and amber?”).
At the end of the Telemachy, the set-up into Calypso becomes cleverly orchestrated. The final
scene of this act involves three locations: In Odysseus’ house, outside of his house, and Sparta.
Outside, Noemon, played by my musician, Johnny, in a hilarious beat, asks Antinous when
Telemachus will be returning. Inside, Eurykleia sets a mattress down and hides Calypso’s props
underneath. Penelope descends the stairs enraged and demands to know what has happened to her
son. Athena intervenes and sends her to sleep. As she does, Eurykleia leaves a dog leash, unseen by
the audience, and unwinds it offstage where it is hooked to a collar. Athena narrates how the suitors
plot Telemachus’ death upstaging all of these actions. When we transition to Calypso, Athena
simply taps the sleeping Penelope awake, who promptly sits upright and is transformed into the
goddess before our very eyes. Athena strikes Penelope’s clothing and walks off stage, and Penelope
grabs the props underneath the mattress: her golden flipflops and godly laurels. A Margaritaville-
inspired bop underscores this moment. Oh, and yes, Odysseus does walk in wearing a spiked collar
attached to the aforementioned leash.
The Storm(s)
In this play, there are three storms. The first happens when Odysseus leaves Calypso’s island. After
the pair construct Odysseus’ raft in a funny dumb-show, Odysseus sets sail. His raft is simple: seven
bentwood chairs standing upstage of a black mattress. He stands upon the mattress and uses a
bamboo pole as an oar. A muslin drop lowers behind him and a puppet of Poseidon’s face
appears. The easy ocean instantly transforms into a stormy thunder, and Poseidon enrages the seas.
The cast enters, robed in blue and purple sarongs. They enter staring into the sky, cleaning their
faces and reaching out to touch the rain. Suddenly, a drum beat intensifies and they whip their
fabrics out like weapons. They surround Odysseus and with a great strike, Poseidon, played by a
66

human actor, enlarges the circle of actors and enters the fray. Instantly we have created a wrestling
ring. The actors that form the circumference of the ring continue to wave their sarongs like water.
The upstage muslin where the puppet had appeared is manipulated violently to look like crashing
waves. Poseidon, using only a piece of fabric, disarms Odysseus’ pole and sends him to the ground.
I love stage combat, but this was more choreography than actual violence. In fact, nearly all violence
in the show is suggested. In this case, Poseidon uses his cloth like a whip and strikes Odysseus from
afar causing him to falter.
The storm transforms into a violent tempest at this point and Odysseus is flung by the actors
around the circle under strobe lighting until he is lifted by three of them and thrown to the floor.
Here, the actors seize the bentwood chairs and split his ship apart. Poseidon strikes Odysseus, ever
so persistent, down once more and sends a tidal wave at him, BUT THEN Athena intervenes. She
causes the tidal wave to change directions the moment it arrives and spares the hero. Then, using
her own chair, she drifts Odysseus, clutching to the debris, to Phaecia.
The other two storms are not nearly as complicated but just as exciting. The second happens when
Aeolus’ bag of winds are opened by curious sailors. This was easy to stage: the actors simply
manipulated the bag as if they were blown of course, knocking over their chairs and poles creating a
ruckus. Lighting and sound helped fill in the space. Up stage, Athena, throughout the scene, had
been clutching a toy ship and walking it across the back to denote the distance they’ve traveled. As
the bag opens, she loses control and whirls the ship in her hands and runs off stage.
The last storm, when Zeus destroys the ship outside of Helios’ island, is also simple. Abbey Kojima
came up with a brilliant design that advanced the metatheatricality of the piece. The lights shut off
in a line – starting from the outside moving center. This, paired with the sound of a switch being
powered off, suggested that the electricity in the theatre had run out. The actors immediately took
advantage of the blackout and filled the space with noise and thrust their chairs and bamboo poles
about creating a massive wave of chaos. The cue ended with one lone sailor calling “Odysseus!” as
he is swallowed by the sea. At lights up, Odysseus is mangled about on stage completely
unconscious. Calypso enters and sees his body, and the rest is history – or, better, mythology.
The Cyclops
The cyclops was the scene I needed to figure out how to stage before I could set the concept of the
show. I originally wanted the cyclops to be played by a massive shadow puppet, but when I realized
we did not have the money to make his lone eye blink (animatronics are expensive!) I settled for
concealing his body completely with a silhouette. A lone muslin drop lowered into the cave of the
cyclops. The actor playing the cyclops walked onto the stage with the rest of the ensemble, but
rather than exploring the cave with the rest of the cast, she disappeared behind the drop. Then, my
musician, underneath the conversation, would play drums. The first few drums were barely audible,
but as they picked up in volume, the cast would jump in unison. The jump was to show how
forceful the cyclops’ footsteps were. In the last moment, the footsteps are so close they send the
cast to the floor and the cyclops appears in a pool of light.
The actors that are to-be eaten approach the sheet cautiously and then roll behind the light and
offstage the moment the cyclops grabs them. He slams a pair of action figures to the ground and
swallows them whole. These toy soldiers were Star Wars action figures, whose costumes, by the
way, look great in silhouette. As the cyclops chews and swallows these soldiers, the flashlight
operator preps for the next illusion: rolling the stone over the mouth of the cave. To accomplish
this, the operator places his hand over the edge of the light. The cyclops reaches his hands out so
67

that they disappear from the radius and they simultaneously pull a large opaque shadow over the
light. This is supplemented by the sound of rolling rocks (created from a rolling marble that had its
pitch lowered and speed slowed-down).
After the cyclops has been blinded, the cast splits the stage. The cyclops emerges, now blindfolded,
and towers over the actors hiding underneath their chairs (in this moment, the chairs are “sheep”).
The cyclops sends each actor out of the cave and they create Odysseus’ boat. Finally, Odysseus
escapes and Athena walks on stage clutching the toy ship tied to a string. She sets the ship before
the Cyclops and begins to pull it away. Odysseus begins to taunt the cyclops and he yells at the ship.
He slams his rock down close to the ship, causing it to rock. The actors on the opposite side of the
stage react, nearly falling off the sides of their chairs. Finally, Athena pulls the ship to safety and the
actors are plunged in darkness while the Cyclops performs his prayer. We must be very fast in this
blackout: the spot is on the Cyclops and the muslin behind him drops. As we set for the Bag of
Winds, the remaining actors grab a flashlight and the Poseidon puppet. The moment the cyclops
completes his prayer, a shriek of thunder echoes across the stage and Poseidon’s face appears,
looming across the muslin. It enlarges and becomes mighty, then instantly we move to Aeolus.
Several moments in this scene honed how I would adapt the play. First, the hubris that Odysseus
displays when he enters the cave. For me, The Odyssey is quintessentially about the golden rule,
and here Odysseus, utterly egotistical, demands that the cyclops treat him like a king. Of course
such unreasonable demands would be met with ferocity – though, of course, it was foolhardy to try
to stay with a cyclops in the first place. Still, I can’t help but wonder had a more cautious, kinder
approach to looking for shelter occurred, then maybe the scenario would have played out
differently. My Odysseus did not kneel when he commanded his troops to kneel: “Now we beg
you, here at your knees, to grant a gift, as is for hosts and guests. Please sir my lord: respect the
gods. We are your suppliants and Zeus takes care of visitors, guest-friends, and those in need!”
In this moment, Odysseus delivers the line with an air of command. I used this scene to illustrate
Odysseus’ own character arc for my actor: here he is at the height of his ego. It takes the remainder
of The Odyssey to bring him down to size.
Tiresias, the Land of the Dead
In this sequence, which started off as a necessary evil and evolved into one of my favorite moments,
three drapes hung evenly spaced across the stage. Two at right and left, one at center. Tiresias, only
lit by a flashlight held to his face (to create a mask of pale white skin since he never sees sunlight,
and because Tiresias is traditionally masked in performance) leads Odysseus downstage of the
drops. But the magic happens behind them.
First, beginning on stage left, the drop is illuminated, and the ship puppet is floating atop cool
water. Here, Tiresias explains Charybdis. The water below the ship is actually a translucent sarong,
which the actors manipulate. They wave the fabric and the billows create the illusion of a
maelstrom. They slowly raise the fabric until it covers the entire pool of light, and the boat puppet,
doubly silhouetted now, “drowns” away. Afterwards, they reset, and the boat puppet is walked
across to the stage right muslin. It is still lit from behind, so that when it emerges from the muslin, it
still appears in silhouette. When it reaches stage right, three actors standing staggered on the right
side of the muslin use “witch fingers” and begin snap them like hungry mouthes at the ship. This is
Skylla. The flashlight operator then uses her own hand to strike at the ship before her hand goes to
cover the light – as if Skylla’s own hand was the one that turned out the lights.
68

Lastly, the sun puppet is illuminated at center. Helios is an extravagnetly carved puppet with fine
detail. It’s beautiful to look at. But gradually Helios enlarges until the only image we see is his pitch
black shadow suggesting something ominous about the god who “sees and hears all things.”
The Sirens & Skylla
I thought it would be funny, particularly in Donald Trump-era politics, to acknowledge the utter
misogyny and sexism in The Odyssey. My sirens did not sing, my musician did, but they
collaborated to create a witty song.
The sirens’ song were actually incredibly sexist remarks that I asked the women to improvise. The
prompt was: “say something you think a straight white male would love to hear.” Among the best
lines I heard: “Will you explain the plot of Star Wars to me?” “Catcalls ARE compliments!”
“Maybe ‘no’ does mean ‘yes!’” and “I love when you tell me I’m not like other girls.” After all these
lines, Odysseus would return to the script: “Let me out! Let me out I say!” I’d like to formally
acknowledge here that the best improvisations came from Rashna Sarwar.
The sirens would retreat off stage and emerge once again to set up the Skylla illusion, which was
repeated from the Tiresias sequence, this time, using the three-dimensional model ship held by
Athena standing in front of the muslin.
The Death of the Suitors
I rarely ever use stage combat, and just as I mentioned before, my violence is far more suggested
than realized. In this moment, I was looking for a bookend of my beginning tableau which shows
the actors transforming into the characters. Recalling the invocation where the actors presented
their sarongs to the audience and then clothed themselves, I reversed it. The suitors landed in the
same places as their entrances at the invocation, and then were all slaughtered one by one. Each
death was not a death, but rather the death of “play” demonstrating that the actor had finished his
track and was “throwing in the towel.”
When the sequence began, it was all 808 drums and strikes of guitar strings orchestrated by the
musician. Each actor received a pool of light as they did at the Invocation sequence, but instead of
them all appearing at once, there were only a maximum of two at a time: the killer and the suitor.
Each suitor died in the same fashion: when the killing blow came, they seized their jackets and
ripped them off with a great breath. Then, as the jacket came out, they held it out for the audience
to see and, as if carrying a newborn or a corpse, they cradled the piece of clothing to the floor. At
that point the light went out. The first death was Antinous, then one-by-one each suitor stripped
their jacket and cradled them to the floor.
I liked this image for numerous reasons: all suitors would get a moment of death, it acknowledged
the “return” of the actor, and it felt appropriate to the spirit of the poem – these folks would not
actually die, the would simply live with the play.
The Epilogue
My one regret is not starting the play out with a pole sticking out from the floor of the stage. I
elected to end the play a bit more happily than the poem does. In the actual text, Odysseus and
Telemachus fight one final skirmish against the suitors’ enraged families before Athena descends
and demands they stop the madness. Instead, the three principal characters – Athena, Telemachus,
and Penelope, help create one final tableau.
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Athena and Zeus reconvene and she informs him Odysseus has left again to fulfill Tiresias’
prophecy. Here, Athena disrobes. She takes off her hooded scarf the same way the suitors did –
cradling it until it hits the floor. A muslin drop rises revealing the actors of Penelope and
Telemachus now playing little children. At this point, the stage is littered with clothes from the dead
suitors, and they run around trying outfits on enacting new scenes.
Suddenly, Odysseus appears, asking them where he has come to. One by one, the children fulfill
Tiresias’ prophecy. When the child asks: “What’s that upon your back sir? Is that a winnowing
fan?” Odysseus, in a moment of realization, walks downstage. The musician begins the theme of
the show via drums, and together they bring the pole down into a great final image. From there, we
go to blackout and the lights come up to curtain call.
In my next iteration, the pole will be standing upright at the top of the show and either Athena or
Odysseus will grab it, plunging the stage into the story as if we have opened Pandora’s box…
III. PUPPETRY
For this production we had twelve puppets: Zeus, Egyptian Pyramids, Eidothea, Proteus, his
transformations (I used four, though the actual Odyssey has six or seven), Poseidon, a boat,
Helios/Sun, and Helios’ cattle.
The puppets were stationary and did not have any animated parts, a result of budget constraints.
When a puppet “spoke” the puppeteer would bob them up and down. My puppets were very large:
the smallest was two-feet across, the cow puppet. The others were an average of 3-4 feet, the largest
being Poseidon’s face, 5.6 feet. They were all fixed to bamboo poles by screw and were cut from
white foam core. I left them white since they were prime surfaces for lighting.
While all the puppets were notoriously detailed, the cow puppet was the most special. To create
the illusion of killing the cow, the puppet was severed into three parts, held together by a special
plastic material that worked by sliding the cow’s body pieces in and out of their grasp. Thus, the
moment sailors kill the cow, they “separate” it by pulling the pieces from the plastic grasps.
Puppets were displayed in plain sight on stage in a specially designed holder that was nailed to the
backwall. They were struck as their lifespan ended, though some remained to give scenic aesthetic.
For instance, the sun/Helios is seldom used in Acts 1 and 2, and so his stationary position, and his
size, actually evoke a real sun in the sky.
A word of caution to those who use shadow puppets: allot a significant amount of time. I was
involved in the construction of ten of twelve puppets and they are frustratingly difficult to cut out.
The best material, besides leather, is foam core. I used a projector to project the designs on to a
60x40 inch sheet and carved them with an XACTO blade and box-cutter for larger swooping cuts.
Sarah Norton, an excellent artist, designed these puppets with immaculate detail. It took me one
full day to do three alone!
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Appendix B: A Note on the Adaptation

Below is an expanded excerpt on the adaptation note that appeared in the playbill. It has been
edited for clarity.
For this production, I chose Emily Wilson’s muscular, frank, and lean translation. Like many
admirers (and detractors) of The Odyssey, I grew up most familiar with the Roberts (that is, Fagles
and Fitzgerald). While both are accurate, and at times, stunning translations, Wilson’s attention to
speech and her adherence to meter rang true to the oral tradition of the poem and thus I decided
hers was by and large the perfect candidate for staging.
Remarkably, her words transferred to the stage without any struggle on my part. Perhaps it was
Wilson’s own attention to detail: she read the entirety of the poem and subsequently her own words
aloud during her writing process. She ensured that the number of lines she had matched the
original, and she implemented iambic pentameter as a use of installing light-footed and image-
driven lyrical rhythm into the soul of the piece. The original Greek is in a nasty mode called
dactylic hexameter, and if you’re like me, anything structural bores me to tears. Of course, the
Elizabethan style, of which English is best equipped for, works perfectly for The Odyssey. I have
always loved that iambic pentameter resembled the beating of human hearts, in a way it makes me
feel like The Odyssey is a living, breathing creature.
Of course, with any translation or even adaptation, many things are lost in the process. I made
many agonizing cuts to truncate this version under two-hours. Gone are the Lastrygonians and
Lotus Eaters; Nestor and sandy Pylos have vanished; and perhaps, most depressingly, Circee, the
bewitching sorceress who turns Odysseus’ men into pigs, also has departed from this version.
Most of these omissions were made because of the producer’s demands. I began the adaptation
process after heaving read through Wilson’s translation twice and Fitzgerald’s once. I wrote down
which parts of the poem I remembered most clearly. Interestingly, the parts of the poem were the
ones that resonated with me the most when I had first encountered it in 9th grade English. In those
moments, I emphasized Telemachus’ story and the cyclops encounter. I also paid special attention
to the death of the suitors and any moment Penelope and Odysseus shared moments. Because I
knew I absolutely wanted to stage the cyclops, the entire design had to service that moment. My
adaptation places the most emphasis on hubris, coming-of-age, xenia, and masculinity.
I am no scholar, just an intense lover of this poem, which, for me, has always been a coming-of-age
tale, more so than a coming-home story. I dwelt a lot in Ithaca with Telemachus when I first read
The Odyssey at fourteen, and I see myself in him constantly. This interest is reflected in my
adaptation which is structured in three parts – “The Telemachy”, “the Odyssey”, and the
“Homecoming.” Yet, at 23, I now begin to see how Odysseus’ journey from great hero to vagabond
mimics a similar journey. The hubris that the titular hero once displayed is utterly decimated over
the course of the story, but what is left is a humility that embraces the friendships he develops high
and low across the wine-dark sea. I am proud to present this adaptation during a time fraught with
divisive rhetoric on how we treat others, particularly the Other, whomever that might be.
“All foreigners and beggars come from Zeus, and any act of kindness is a blessing.”
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Appendix C: Photography

All photos were taken by Lily Cole unless otherwise noted.

The suitors’ entrance.

(From left to right on staircase: Lucas Hardy, Mason Van Gieson, and Jonah Schulte)
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Sailing to Sparta
(From Left to Right: Noa Gelb, Skylar Deming, Alexandra Reynolds, Harrison Kenum, Danielle
Peck, Jonah Schulte, and Lucas Hardy)

Menelaos’ Account
(Jonah Schulte, puppet operated by Kylie Ann Stone and voiced by Harrison Kenum)
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The Storm
(Harrison Kenum, at center, and the ensemble)

Nausicaa and Odysseus

(In foreground: Alexandra Reynolds, Noa Gelb, Danielle Peck, and Harrison Kenum)
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The Magical Kingdom

(Alexandra Reynolds, Harrison Kenum, Mason Van Gieosn, Lucas Hardy (standing), Noa Gelb,
Kylie Ann Stone, Jonah Schulte, Rashna Sarwar (back))

The Cyclops
(Harrison Kenum and Rashna Sarwar)
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The Sirens
(Kylie Ann Stone, Danielle Peck, Mason Van Gieson)

Zeus destroys the ship

(The Ensemble)
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Odysseus in Phaecia
(Harrison Kenum)

The Contest of the Bow

(Harrison Kenum and Skylar Deming)
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Phaecians
(Skylar Deming, Kylie Ann Stone, Rashna Sarwar, Mason Van Gieson, Noa Gelb)

King Alcinous’ Court

(Danielle Peck, Alexandra Reynolds, Mason Van Gieson, Rashna Sarwar, Skylar Deming, and
Kylie Ann Stone, Jonah Schulte)
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Reunited
(Mason Van Gieson, Harrison Kenum)