Reviews are in for director Robert Icke's take on Aeschylus' Oresteia at Park Avenue Armory. The show opened July 26 Off-Broadway, where it began previews July 13. It runs in repertory with Hamlet through August 13.
Starring as Klytemnestra is Olivier nominee Anastasia Hille, joined by Angus Wright as Agamemnon/Aegisthus along with Luke Treadaway as Orestes, Kirsty Rider as Doctor, Peter Wright as Menelaus, Joshua Higgott as Talthybius, Tia Bannon as Electra, and Michael Abubakar as Calchas. David Rintoul, Hara Yannas, Gilbert Kyem Jr., Ross Waiton, and Marty Cruikshank complete the cast.
Read the reviews here.
New York Stage Review (David Finkle)
New York Theater (Jonathan Mandell)
New York Theatre Guide (Diep Tran)
The New York Times (Laura Collins-Hughes)
Vulture (James Frankie Thomas)
Wall Street Journal (Charles Isherwood)
Playbill will continue to update this list as reviews come in.
The Oresteia follows the Atreides Curse, beginning with the murder of Agamemnon, the King of Mycenae who has returned from the Trojan War, by his wife Klytemnestra as revenge for sacrificing their eldest daughter to the Artemis as penitence for offending the goddess, among other desires. Years later, Agamemnon and Klytemnestra's son returns to kill his mother in retribution for the murder of his father. Oresteia follows the family's destruction through the trial of Orestes, and the end of Atreides Curse.
Featured on the creative team are set and costume designer Hildegard Bechtler, lighting designer Natasha Chivers, and sound designer Tom Gibbons. Video is by Tal Yarden. Icke's interpretations of Hamlet and Oresteia both made their world premieres at London's Almeida Theatre. Wright, Higgott, and Yannas return to Oresteia after having previously starred in the original Almeida Theatre production.
READ: Alex Lawther Brings an Open Mind to Playing Hamlet
"Icke’s directorial approach recontextualizes and democratizes classic texts that are often seen as inaccessible," says Armory Marina Kellen French Artistic Director Pierre Audi in a statement, "catapulting them into the modern world and upholding their relevance." Using video elements and stage design to look at the psychological impacts of grief and retribution, the two productions will alternate evenings.
For tickets and more information, visit ArmoryOnPark.org.
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