Hermes The Odyssey

'The Odyssey' Theater review

Opening night of Sycamore Rouge's summer production of "The Odyssey" had the advantage of pleasant temperatures, low humidity and the grand landscape of the Historic Battersea estate — the 18th-century home of Petersburg's first mayor, a framer of the Articles of Confederation — with its broad lawns and tall magnolia trees.

The setting provided a fine backdrop for an evening of storytelling — and storytelling is what this production of "The Odyssey," directed by kb saine, does best.

Given the outdoor venue, one might expect that the production values would be simplified or pared down to the basics. The lighting was basic but effective, and the sound quality was adequate or better, but overall I felt that the production quality was disappointing.

Understandably, costuming had to be kept simple, to accommodate the needs of 16 actors playing more than 80 roles, but some choices were just odd, given the time and setting of the dramatic interpretation of Homer's mythic tale of Odysseus' return to his home in Ithaca, some 20 years after the end of the Trojan War.

Given that Ashley Maurisa Davis had to walk stooped over in her role as the faithful old servant, Eurycleia, a less revealing shirt might have been more appropriate.

On the other hand, one element that was very well-executed was the red ribbons of blood that accompanied each wounding or death.

When Hermes arrives from Mount Olympus to tell the beautiful nymph Calypso to release Odysseus from bondage on her private island, Hermes gives Calypso the V-fingered "I've got my eyes on you" sign. Also, when the Phaeacian princess Nausicaa and her companions go to the river to wash clothes, they sing a rhyme reminiscent of a young girl's rope-jumping verse or handclapping game.

The sirens were also notable, for while their movements were seductive, their spoken segment was more like a cross between a scene from the film "For Colored Girls" and a number from Bob Fosse's "A Chorus Line" — amusing, but odd.

Given the varieties of the outdoors, it was not surprising when a train's horn and rumbling interrupted the proceedings onstage. What was surprising was Claire Biggers' reaction when, giving her final speech as Athena, she said, "What's this?" and held her pose, frozen, until the train passed by.

Biggers as the goddess Athena, Jeffrey Cole as Odysseus and Carolyn Haynes as the dedicated Penelope all brought credence to their parts, but I found Risegun Bennett-Olomidum's small stature an odd choice for Zeus, king of the gods.

Teen Review: The Odyssey « Gread

The tale begins on Mt. Olympus where Athena draws Zeus’ attention to Odysseus whose journey has been halted on the island of Calypso. Zeus sends Hermes to have Odysseus released and Athena goes to Ithaca. In Ithaca she assumes a disguise and convinces Telemachus to go on a journey seeking news of his father. Telemachus calls an assembly announcing that the suitors who have besieged his house and have eaten his food for years are in the wrong. He goes to see Nestor at Pylos and Nestor does not know anything recent about his father. Nestor advises him to go to Sparta to see Menelaus. When he gets to Sparta, Menelaus tells him that the last thing he heard about Odysseus was that he was trapped on the island of Calypso. They feast together and talk into the night.

Hermes the thief, the evolution of a myth

The last scenes of the Odyssey

The Odyssey of Homer

Englits-The Odyssey

The Odyssey of Homer