Staff Pick
Euripedes is known in the classics world for upending traditions of the play, and Bakkhai is no exception. Dionysos is the god of wine, fertility, and religious fervor, among other things, and at the start of the play has inspired a mad cult following, the Bakkhai — which has ensnared almost everyone in the ancient town of Thebes. Everyone, that is, except for King Pentheus, who is determined to undermine the cult, and in doing so draws the attention of Dionysos himself. Anne Carson's deft skill in translating ancient Greek brings this horrifying and bizarre play to life, and working in a copacetic fashion with the text, readers can almost hear the sound of skin and limb being torn apart by Dionysos's followers. Recommended By Alex Y., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Anne Carson writes, "Euripides was a playwright of the fifth century BC who reinvented Greek tragedy, setting it on a path that leads straight to reality TV. His plays broke all the rules, upended convention and outraged conservative critics. The Bakkhai is his most subversive play, telling the story of a man who cannot admit he would rather live in the skin of a woman, and a god who seems to combine all sexualities into a single ruinous demand for adoration. Dionysos is the god of intoxication. Once you fall under his influence, there is no telling where you will end up."