The Odyssey: Missing Presumed Dead @ Everyman

Review by Jennifer Tsai Lee | 13 Oct 2015

Just a year after his take on The Iliad, the poet and playwright Simon Armitage returns to a re-telling of Homer, this time in an adaptation of that epic poem of heroism and adventure, The Odyssey.

Armitage audaciously interposes the action between the ancient and contemporary, endowing the narrative of The Odyssey: Missing Presumed Dead with a strong political polemic.

The play begins with its hero, a British cabinet minister named Smith – impressively performed by Colin Tierney – at the centre of a political crisis. While on a diplomatic mission to Istanbul, Smith watches a FIFA World Cup qualifying match between England and Turkey; the bar he's in descends into an ugly brawl, and a young Muslim girl is glassed in the neck. From thereon, he goes on the run for a crime he didn’t commit.

Through this rather far-fetched device, the modern-day Smith becomes Odysseus, navigating his voyage home to his wife, Penelope. On the way, he encounters a plethora of unearthly creatures and beings, including Cyclops, Circe (alluringly played by Danusia Samal), the Sirens, witches, whirlpools and flesh-eating armies.

Armitage’s ambitious version of Odysseus’s travels has some definite merits, particularly in its production. There is marvellous visual appeal in the set design, courtesy of Signe Beckmann, as the stage transforms into the prow of a ship, complete with mast and oars. The lighting and the music is suitably atmospheric.

At times, the transitions between the past and present seem slightly uneven. However, the strong cast performs with energy, performers often deftly veering between several roles.

There is humour in the contemporary scenes, in exchanges between the Europhobic, anti-Islam Prime Minister (an excellent Simon Dutton) and his daughter/PA, Anthea (played with sharpness by Polly Frame).

Overall, Armitage's Odyssey offers a dazzling, if somewhat bewildering, journey.


The Odyssey: Missing Presumed Dead runs until 17 October 2015 at Liverpool Everyman Theatre, £12-£22

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