On a sun-scorched island off the coast of Greece, beautiful Penelope awaits the return of her husband, Odysseus, from the Trojan war. Beneath her window, four Speedo-clad men camp in an empty swimming pool, a cock-eyed internment where both provisions and time are running low. Locked in a do-or-die competition to win Penelope’s love, they preen and posture and connive in a last ditch effort to cheat a grisly fate.
Penelope, the newest play by powerhouse Irish playwright Enda Walsh, is an eloquent, wildly funny riff on life, love and the war at home.
We’re thrilled to present Enda Walsh’s Penelope as the second play in our season, “Dispatches from the Homefront.”
A conversation with playwright Enda Walsh and Steppenwolf Literary Manager Aaron Carter
The delicious tension between the original and the riff is part of what makes retellings of The Odyssey so popular. Please enjoy this glimpse of the company Enda Walsh’s Penelope keeps.
Four men are locked in combat for resources and a mate. From the perspective of evolution, this is the most fundamental of competitions: surviving long enough to pass your genes to the next generation.
Fun facts about the cast of Penelope