Medea @ The Hub

Adura Onashile shines in Liz Lochhead’s adaptation of Medea. First performed in Glasgow back in 2000, the Edinburgh International Festival has partnered with the National Theatre of Scotland to bring the Greek tragedy back to centre stage. Paired with Michael Boyd’s directorship, Lochhead’s reconstruction of the antediluvian power struggle that has fixated the sexes for centuries explores the cost of feminine love and revenge cloaked in civility.  

Forgoing tradition, the stage juts out into the audience like a catwalk – Medea and Jason (Robert Jack) pace up and down like caged animals while the chorus weaves in and out of the standing crowd like shadows. Unnoticed by the other characters, they embody the full spectrum of Scottish femininity. Perhaps they are echoes of Medea’s madness – voices of her internal validation and rage at the waves of patriarchal control that engulf her. Here, Bea Webster stands out clearly while Onashile’s deft tackling of the role of Medea is fluid and formidable, commanding the stage with ease. 

Alana Jackon’s Glauke borders on glibness with the smug affirmation that she never meant for her new-found love to hurt anyone. Mute and missing from the original – present only in the vitriol of Medea’s hatred – Glauke’s presence in Lochhead’s adaptation introduces the perspective of the third corner of the love triangle as the ‘other woman’ holding a tentative olive branch in the name of female solidarity. 

Amidst the tragedy, Lochhead embeds moments of humour into her dialogue. Her use of colloquialism blends Scots-inflected prose against Medea’s clear-cut English accent – a further example of her alienation and otherness. Lochhead plays into this on several occasions exploring the idea of sacrifice and love. 

Not to be missed, Lochhead’s Medea is well-worth a trip. Seated options are also available for purchase and not to be overlooked. 

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Medea, The Hub, until 28 Aug, various times, £37 (concessions available)