The summer is very weird for theatre. Things sometimes get announced only a couple of weeks before they open. And sometimes those things end up sounding really extremely cool. Like for instance this free outdoor production of The Penelopiad that's being produced independently.
The Penelopiad is a retelling of Homer's Odyssey as told from the perspective of Odysseus’s wife and twelve of her maids. Cool idea. Perhaps even cooler is the fact that it's written by Margaret Atwood. (She wrote The Handmaid's Tale. THAT Margaret Atwood.)
What's possibly the coolest thing about this announcement is that the production in question will be free . . . and it will be staged outdoors under the Holton Street Viaduct at Water and Brady.
Here's a video tease for the show recorded at the venue:
The show is being funded through Kickstarter.
The project has quite nearly reached its goal of $1,999 as of this writing.
If they reach their goal, donations taken on a Pay What You Can basis at the performances will go to cast and crew. And that would be kind of cool . . . y'know . . . the actors getting paid and everything.
Who are the actors? Here's the cast list: Reva Fox plays Penelope. Twelve Milwaukee actors play the maids: Abbey Bobzin, Amanda Carson, Molly Corkins, Layna Davis, Kelly Doherty, Marcee Doherty-Elst, Amanda Garrigan, Joanna Kerner, Andrea Moser, Sally Staats, Maddie Wakley, and Gwen Zupan. The show is directed by Leda Hoffman.
The Penelopiad runs August 21st through 27th. The 21st is a preview show. All shows start at 8pm.
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For more information, visit the production's website.
