Warning: this article contains spoilers.
Indhu Rubasingham has begun her tenure as the director of the National Theatre with her production of Bacchae, playwright Nima Taleghani’s new version of Euripides’ ancient Greek tragedy. A play about the Greek god of theatre, it’s a bold choice that makes a clear statement about Rubasingham’s thoughts on the power of the theatre and what audiences might expect under her leadership at the National.
Dionysus and his celebrants, the Bacchae, are travelling west from Asia to Thebes, where the god’s cousin Pentheus rules as king. When Pentheus refuses to acknowledge Dionysus’ divinity, the god exacts revenge by driving the women of Thebes – including Pentheus’ mother, Agave – into divine madness.
