Adapting Myth in Modern and Contemporary Drama

Although the term myth suggests very old stories, mythologies themselves continue to grow and change over time. This course examines how modern and contemporary playwrights adapt mythic materials to new contexts, not only drawing on myth but also changing the nature of myth itself. Several of the plays we examine reinterpret Greek myth, including Marina Carr's and Cherríe Moraga's Medea adaptations By the Bog of Cats and The Hungry Woman (respectively), Sarah Ruhl's Eurydice, and Suzan-Lori Parks' Odyssey-inspired Father Comes Home from the Wars (Parts 1, 2, and 3), but we also draw upon other mythic traditions as well, as in works by Wole Soyinka, Girish Karnad, and Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig. In addition to gaining familiarity with several important works of the modern stage, the course interrogates what exactly makes something a myth and how mythology continues to operate in the present day.