Herakles via Phaedra La MaMa Experimental Theatre

Herakles via Phaedra, in a new adaptation by Ellen Stewart, opens at La MaMa Experimental Theatre on the 21May 2006, following previews from the 18 May and running through to the 11 Jun 2006.

Herakles via Phaedra combines the myths of Herakles (also known as Hercules) and Phaedra, placing them amongst the flappers, bootleggers and jazz babies of the 1920's. Herakles must prove his godliness and atone for a hideous crime against his wife and two sons by performing a series of twelve labors, from killing a fierce lion to bare-handedly capturing a three-headed dog.

Meanwhile in the court of Aphrodite, a handmaiden named Phaedra sets out to win the heart of a king, only to find herself falsely accused of having a love affair with her stepson. Herakles and Phaedra's stories intertwine, leading one to a tragic end and the other to glory.

Herakles via Phaedra, directed by Ellen Stewart, will feature a cast of 25 in fashions of the period, elaborate masks and specialty costumes depicting such creatures as Cerebus, the three-headed dog; the Minotaur (half-bull, half-man); and Nessos, the Centaur (half-man, half-horse).

The play has choreography by Renouard Gee, set design by Jun Maeda and sound by Tim Schellenbaum.