Apollo/Dionysus (Parts I, II & II) is a highly thoughtful play that hurls an audience headlong into a discussion of how we should live our lives. These problems are contemplated by The Child, a non-descript figure who calls upon the gods themselves in order to help him/her put together a coherent ideology by which to live his/her life. Enter the Greek gods Apollo (the god of order and truth) and Dionysus (the god of fertility and wine), who set about vying for influence over The Child.
Thedead have been performing this piece for some years now, although this is the first time that it has appeared at the Fringe in its entirety. The performance space is merely a white floor, driving home that the play exists outside of location or time. This concept is reinforced by the fact that The Child is also dressed only in white, blending into the background so that it is only the relentless questions are relevant. The gods, at whom the questions are hurled, appear naked; it is only their true selves that are worthy of attention. The scene is set for an evening of undiluted, unrestrained philosophical discussion, one entirely stripped of any subjectivity other than that of the principles discussed.
To call this play intellectually stimulating would be an understatement. It is intellectually invigorating and enlightening. So clear and concise is the script that there are few avenues left unexplored, bravely and unashamedly throwing Western morality to the floor and pointing out each imperfect extremity. Taking my seat, I was expecting two different ideologies (hedonism and restraint) to stubbornly compete, leaving it to The Child to decide who to believe. Instead, I witnessed an incredibly well-informed piece of theatre, which did not shirk at showing how order and chaos are impossible to divide (often Apollo and Dionysus speak together) and completely dependent on each other (Apollo punishes threats to his order like a despot, and Dionysus romance could not exist were he not born from barbaric Zeus).
The one regret was that there was not enough passion in the life philosophies advertised, or indeed despair at the impossibility of finding an answer. However, that is not the tone of the piece. This is numbing contemplation, vindicating for those that know of the curse morality has cast upon us and shattering for those who hold it dear.
