Medea

Update: This performance is being revived, click here to see!

Synopsis

Medea - stolen from her land and deserted by her husband. Granddaughter of sun-god Helios, and princess of Colchis, Medea is powerful, and she turns her strength on her betrayer. Foreign but fierce, Medea will exact her cruel, awesome revenge.

Jason has abandoned his wife, Medea, and their two children. He is planning the wedding arrangements for his remarriage to Creusa, the daughter of Creon, king of the land, with the hope that this marriage will bring him security and prosperity.

News spreads of Medea’s hateful cursing of her husband and his new fiancée. Fearing she plans revenge, Creon banishes Medea and her children. After pleading for mercy, Medea is allowed one day before she must leave, during which she completes her infamous quest for "justice"— killing Creusa and Creon with a wedding gift covered in poison before committing the final gruesome act of killing her own children. 

Medea is not just a story about gods and kings, myths and legends, dragons and golden fleeces. It’s a powerful exploration of displacement, belonging, and identity. 

In our production, we use a chorus of women from diverse cultures to sing Medea’s message: a call for revenge, a call for justice, and a call to action.

We know this story well, but we don’t know it told like this.

Background

In 2018, Medea was created to tackle the lack of diverse theatre at Oxford University. We were driven by the desire to bring numerous cultures and people of colour together to perform this powerful, classical story in a reimagined way.

Medea’s sold-out run at Oxford’s Keble O’Reilly Theatre attracted all kinds of local and national attention. Responses from audiences were excellent, with a standing ovation at every show, and it brought people into theatre who previously didn’t realise it was for them.  

Future

We are in the research and development stage of bringing this show to London.

View the programme here.

View the full production here.