One of the most famous classical poems of all times is the Iliad. Written by Homer in the 8th century BC, it deals with the events surrounding the legendary war between the Greeks and the Trojans (believed by some to be located in modern day Turkey). In Achilles, Death of the Gods, classicist Jo Kelan combines poetry with snatches of dialogue to provide a modern reworking of Homer’s epic poem in just forty-five minutes.
Simple but strong staging of legendary epic
The core of the story is the friendship between Achilles and the exiled Patroclus. While Homer left the exact nature of the relationship between the two ambiguous, pretty much every modern writer has tended to go with the idea that the two were lovers, something Kelan fully embraces in this version, and which makes perfect sense.
With Achilles sitting on the sidelines after a row with Agamemnon over a captured girl, Patroclus insists on donning Achilles’ armour and going into battle, in his lover’s place, supposedly in order to inspire the Greek troops, but also to prove his honour. While this initially works, Patroclus gets carried away in the heat of battle and tragedy inevitably strikes. This causes Achilles to re-enter the fray, setting up an epic showdown with Hector.
It’s an action-packed tale, and Kalen tells it well. With a simple set, consisting of a table and two bottles, she manages to grab the audiences’ attention and holds it for the entire duration. She also does a good job of telling the story of Breisis, a minor character, who is traded between the two Greek commanders like a token. In the hands of a lesser writer this might seem like a distraction, but in fact reinforces the central point of Kalen’s piece, the extent to which posturing and pride can fuel conflict, which ends up inflicting a cruel cost on all those unlucky to be caught within its crossfire.
Overall, a strong production that has an important message.
