Penelope's maids run riot in Atwood's Penelopiad — SkimNews
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- The Penelopiad runs at York Theatre Royal until 31 October, adapted by Margaret Atwood from her own novella and directed by Juliet Forster
- The production reclaims the voices of both Penelope and her 'brutally slain' maids, whose perspective has been 'silenced altogether' in Homer's original telling
- Sara Perks's set places the action in a sterile, featureless Hades, with blood-red ropes evoking both Penelope's weaving and the cords used to hang the maids
- An eight-strong maids' chorus sings, dances, and pulls on different costumes, interrupting the narrative with their own bitter take on events
- Amelia Bullmore plays Penelope with 'wry reserve' and captures her trepidation at being married off to Odysseus, though the review flags stiffness and underpowered grim humour
- The staging is compared to the theatrical mischief of Kneehigh and Wise Children, but without the same 'dazzle or bite'
Why it matters: The production runs only until 31 October at York Theatre Royal, giving regional audiences a narrow window for Atwood's rebuttal to a summer of Odysseus-centric adaptations. The reviewer finds the eight-strong maids' chorus delivers far more theatrical energy than lead Amelia Bullmore's stiffer Penelope, leaving the show's most distinctive element under-served by its central performance.
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