CHICAGO -- Chicago has seen Greek legends recycled into English. Northlight Theatre just premiered Amlin Gray's new adaptation of Sophocles' Philoctetes as The Wound and the Bow. Opening June 10 in a Defiant Theatre Midwest premiere staged by Lisa Rothschiller, Phaedra's Love is a salacious and graphic retake on the classic tale of Queen Phaedra's incestuous love for her stepson Hippolytus. According to 27-year-old British playwright Sarah Kane, Hippolytus is no longer a prude but a prince bored with his celebrity, while Phaedra lives to cure him of his ennui. Originally a critique of the British royal family, Phaedra's Love is designed to work equally as a look at the pop-cultural archetype of the "bad boy" who needs redemption and the changing face of masculinity in Western culture. For information call 312- 409-0585.
-- By Lawrence Bommer
Chicago Correspondent