Penelope

by Enda Walsh

"One of the most dazzling wordsmiths of contemporary theater, and one who has a direct conduit to our wanting hearts."— Guardian "Superbly talented."—Paul Muldoon, The Times Literary Supplement "A writer who deserves to be better known in this country."— The New York Times From the author of The Walworth Farce and The New Electric Ballroom —works whose joint publication was named one of the best books of 2009 by The Times Literary Supplement —comes an adaptation of Homer's Odyssey , as only Enda Walsh could do it. Due to be presented at the Galway Arts Festival by the Druid Theater Company, which launched many of Walsh's other works, Penelope focuses not on the titular character awaiting her husband Odysseus' return, but on her gaggle of suitors. The setting is the bottom of a drained swimming pool. The costuming involves Speedos. And topics of conversation include bickering over sausages for the BBQ. Enda Walsh has been recognized by numerous awards for his plays, which include The Walworth Farce , The New Electric Ballroom , Disco Pigs , Bedbound , Small Things , Chatroom , and the award-winning screenplay for Hunger . His work has been translated into more than twenty languages.

Genres: Plays, Theatre

96 pages, Paperback

First published November 23, 2010

About the author

Enda Walsh (born 1967) is an Irish playwright born in Dublin and currently living in London. Walsh attended the same secondary school where both Roddy Doyle and Paul Mercier taught. Having written for the Dublin Youth Theatre, he moved to Cork where he wrote Fishy Tales for the Graffiti Theatre Company, followed by Ginger Ale Boy for Corcadorca Theatre Company. His main breakthrough came with the production of his play Disco Pigs in collaboration with director Pat Kiernan of Corcadorca. Since then he moved to London, where he has been particularly prolific over the past five years, bringing his productions to thirteen stage plays, two radio plays and two screenplays.

Winner of the 1997 Stewart Parker and the George Devine Awards, he won the Abbey Theatre Writer in Association Award for 2006. Productions of his plays at the Edinburgh Festival have won four Fringe First Awards, two Critic's Awards and a Herald Archangel Award (2008). His plays, notably Disco Pigs[1], Bedbound, Small Things, Chatroom, New Electric Ballroom[2] and The Walworth Farce, have been translated into more than 20 languages and have had productions throughout Europe and in Australia, New Zealand and the U.S. He has written two radio plays, with Four Big Days in the Life of Dessie Banks for RTÉ winning the I PA Radio Drama Award and The Monotonous Life of Little Miss P for the BBC commended at the Gran Prix Berlin. His commissioned work includes plays for Paines Plough in London, the Druid Theatre in Galway, the Kammerspiele in Munich and the Royal National's Connections Project in London. He wrote the screenplay of the film Disco Pigs and co-wrote the screenplay of Hunger which was directed by Steve McQueen and stars Michael Fassbender as Bobby Sands, the IRA hunger striker who starved himself to death in protest over British rule. Hunger won numerous awards (see below) including the Caméra d'Or award at the Cannes Film Festival, Best Film Award from the Evening Standard British Film Awards 2009 and a nomination for Best British Film at the British Academy Film Awards. He wrote an adaptation of his play Chatroom for a film directed by Hideo Nakata which was selected for the Un Certain Regard section at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival. He is currently under commission for two films, an adaptation of the children's story Island of the Aunts by Eva Ibbotson and a biography of Dusty Springfield.

Reviews

[Issie Aris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reading the play was alright, but I did find that I was dragging myself through each page just to finish. I think I would have preferred to watch the play rather than reading it as the staging would have been interesting!

[Sophia M · Rating 1 out of 5]

Stories relating back to classical Greek stories have always fascinated me, but this one in particular was..... not what I wanted it to be. To say the least. I don’t think in this cultural moment, the story we need is four old men fighting for the attention of a much younger woman. These men are cruel and violent and fail to redeem themselves or the story.

[Lindsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this play would've been much more interesting to have seen rather than to read. The story was interesting but it felt long and boring while reading it. I feel seeing the actors doing these things in a theater would have made me enjoy it.

[jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absurd and fun. I’d love to see the play in person.

[Stella · Rating 2 out of 5]

Penelope is an ambitious mash-up of classical revisionism and absurdist theater, clearly drawing inspiration from the likes of Waiting for Godot while attempting to inject new life—and new meaning—into the story of Odysseus’s return. The premise is undeniably rich: four suitors trapped in a kind of existential purgatory beside a drained swimming pool, awaiting inevitable death at the hands of Odysseus, reflecting on love, purpose, and regret. The setup suggests potential for both tragicomic brilliance and philosophical heft.

And yet, for all its promise, the play ultimately left me cold.

Part of the challenge lies in the characters themselves. While it may have been an intentional choice to blur their identities and reduce them to types—interchangeable suitors with zesty 1950s zeal for BBQ and sausage, all equally trapped and equally desperate—the result is a frustrating sameness. Their monologues and interactions feel more exhausting than illuminating, more grating than profound. Unlike Beckett’s characters, who manage to balance despair with strange charm and biting wit, Walsh’s suitors often come off as simply annoying. Their philosophical musings lack the punch or lyricism needed to really resonate, and their humor falls flat more often than not.

The final monologues—clearly meant as moments of emotional catharsis or existential revelation—also miss the mark. They aim high, but land with a thud, feeling more like theatrics for theatrics’ sake than genuine insight into what it means to live or die with purpose. While I can acknowledge that this play might be far more effective when performed, with the physicality and delivery of actors breathing life into the text, I’m not convinced that the thematic takeaways would land much more strongly.

There’s ambition here, no doubt. And I appreciate what Penelope tries to do: reframe myth through a postmodern lens, probe into the absurdity of masculine ego, explore the futility of desire in the face of death. But in practice, the execution felt muddled, repetitive, and emotionally underwhelming.

[Kate Margaret Luke · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think 3.5 stars but I’ll have to come back after I’ve had time to think.

[Victoria Claringbold]

DNF

[Lia · Rating 3 out of 5]

wtf. i mean i know the return of odysseus ends pretty gory but this is just eugh

[Spencer Read · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really really wanted to love this play. But I honestly just liked it. It wasn't as good as I thought it would be and, for me at least, could have used a bit more of those kind of 'Wow' moments from the dialogue. The concept is loosely based on the end of Homer classic epic "The Odyssey", but is more rooted in our modern sensibilities, which is nice. Another thing that I found refreshing is that "Penelope", while it does have something to say, never got preachy with what it was trying to say. All in all, despite dragging in parts, "Penelope" was a really good play, I would recommend you see it or read it if you have the chance, but it's by no means a GREAT play.

[Zan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating retelling of the final chapter of Homer's ODYSSEY, PENELOPE depicts the four final suitors grappling for Penelope's affections, knowing Odysseus will return today. Oh, and they are dressed in Speedos at the bottom of an empty pool while Penelope hears their expressions of love through a TV monitor in the house above the pool.

I'm still wading through my reactions to this play. There's a lot going on here. However, the more I think of it, the more I love it. I look forward to discussing it in class.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not Enda's best play but a good one.

[celina · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Outside of here there must be a world." i... can't even breathe