Classical Drama in Translation
A series of new translations of the Greek Tragedies by Perth classicist and poet Colin Young
The great tragedies of antiquity in new translations
The works of Euripides, Aeschylus and Sophocles need to be revisited in each generation, and their rich explorations of the eternal themes of life put into contemporary speech while staying true to the forms and modes of antiquity.
Perth poet and classical scholar, Dr Colin E Young, has made these new translations both for lovers of literature, and for actors and directors wanting to visit the wellsprings of their art.
The plays are all presented in a modern dramatic layout suitable for performance.
Women of Troy
Euripides' Women of Troy (415 BC) details the plight of several famous Trojan women after the fall of Troy, just before they are to be handed over as slaves to their Greek conquerors. A visceral portrayal of the horrors and pointlessness of war. Buy a copy at Lulu here
Hippolytus
Hippolytus (428 BC) A young man is obsessed with his virginity and worship for Artemis, because of a pathological loathing of sex and women. The story also involves his poor stepmother Phaedra, who is struck with a forbidden desire for her stepson under the malign influence of the goddess Aphrodite. A complex story of obsession, misunderstanding, and the dangers of deception. Buy a copy at Lulu here.
The Suppliant Women
The Suppliant Women (c. 463 BC) 50 women from Egypt seek asylum in Argos to avoid forced marriage with their cousins. The play details their terror and agony at being forced to leave their homeland as refugees, and how they manage to be granted permanent residency and accommodation by the King and the assembly. Buy a copy at Lulu here.
Oedipus at Colonus
Written 406 BC – The blind old Oedipus is led by his daughter Antigone to his final resting place in a grove of the Furies situated in Colonus, Athens. He must be granted protection by Theseus the King of Athens, and fend off being forcibly dragged back to Thebes, along with his daughters, by his uncle Creon. The tale transforms Oedipus from a figure of horror into a magical talisman with the power to protect. The description of his death is unusual and sublime. Buy a copy at Lulu here.
Prometheus in Chains
Prometheus in Chains (c. 440 BC) The Titan Prometheus is chained to the top of a mountain by Hephaestus, on Zeus’s orders, for stealing fire from the gods and giving it to humanity. He is visited by Ocean, his daughters the Oceanids, and by Io, a woman who Zeus has fallen in love with. The tale is about defiant resistance to political tyranny and cruelty. Buy a copy at Lulu here.
The Homeric Hymn to Demeter
Written in the 6th Century BC by an unknown poet – The story of how Demeter’s daughter Persephone is taken by Hades to the underworld, and how Demeter scours the world to find her. After taking on a human form and staying with a mortal family on earth, Demeter eventually locates Persephone and brings her back to earth. The tale is a universal one about the love of a mother for her lost daughter, and the lengths she will go to find her.. Buy a copy at Lulu here.