The Young Everyman Playhouse Directors' Festival (or YEP for short) is fast approaching with six short plays ready to take over the EV1 space. One of this year's directors, George Fragakis, has devised Our House is Condemned through an adaptation of the Greek tragedy "Oresteia" by Aeschylus.

The originating text follows a 'bloodthirsty king, a venomous queen, and a vigorous queen, all tangled in a story of revenge, violence, and power'. Fragakis' adaptation of the classic text is to be performed by a singular actor who takes on the role of the narrator. Jason Kelly is set to embody the role and will play a citizen in the modern English world, exploring modern voices underscored by a tremendous punk soundtrack.

The Creative Wire was able to get the inside scoop with both director George Fragakis and actor Jason Kelly. As one of the six directors for the YEP Directors Festival, Fragakis shares his unique experience with us during his process. His vision to introduce Greek theatre to a modern audience through relevance and accessibility is fueled by a passion to keep the Greek tragedies alive and current. Fragakis is the only international director out of the six and is proud to be a part of YEP to explore, devise, and ultimately share his vision with those in Liverpool, a community that he describes as interesting and important to the theatre scene.

Fragakis takes inspiration from the theatre company Actors of Dionysus and their motto of 'let's make Greek tragedy seriously sexy'. To George Fragakis, 'seriously sexy' means theatre that is relevant, accessible, interesting, and fascinating for modern audiences without the strict, stylized manner in which Greek tragedy is perceived. He wants to share his version of Greek tragedy through blood and revenge in a way that will send shivers down the spine, becoming enticing through its passion and fresh style.

So now that I've caught your attention, you most likely want to know what to expect from "Our House is Condemned". To put it simply, the audience should expect to see a story inspired by Greek tragedy, situated in 1980s England. The text remains the same as the original; however, it has been turned on its head and now takes the form of a unique narrative centering around one man. It is inclusive of the traditional Greek stock characters and themes and revolves around revenge and retribution.

Fragakis wants the audience to witness the shifts in characters, told by one man, and how they seamlessly evolve into one another with complete intent. Actor Jason Kelly plays the four characters during the show and has worked tirelessly with Fragakis to establish distinct changes between each one. The multiple roles on stage happen simultaneously at times, and therefore a clear adjustment will be made to portray these transformations.

Both Fragakis and Kelly have conducted a thorough analysis of each character and what they represent. An overarching theme of power and the abuse of power has emerged, prompting consideration of the positioning of power and its abuse in a modern timescale, raising the question of how we perceive the abuse of power in our world and how we can convey this with traditional text. Fragakis has enjoyed the process of bringing a classical text to life, contextualizing it against our own version of society without losing the original point and purpose from a society 2000 years ago.

However, like any director, Fragakis faced challenges during his creative process. His biggest challenge was devising a piece that reflects our current society and the problems we face without making it forcefully political. Of course, any piece of theatre aims to be loud and proud in its expressive opinion; however, Fragakis wants to keep the fascinating tale of the drama of this particular royal house and the fallen rise of those characters at the forefront.

Director George Fragakis follows his vision of setting "Our House is Condemned" in the 1980s through the punk movement, a thriving element of political and philosophical anarchy during that time period. With the assistance of actor, painter, and visual artist Jason Kelly, a visual representation has been created that aids the revelation of societal standpoints and changes during this up-to-date tragedy.

The sole actor of this production, Jason Kelly, reveals the challenges he faced in portraying all four characters in "Our House is Condemned". The Ancient Greek text consists of a key character proposing monologues, supported by the responses of the chorus. Through a skillful adaptation on Fragakis' part, the pair were able to create clear mannerisms that instantly portray each character. Kelly shares that this has challenged and developed his acting endurance to the limits. Working with George Fragakis has been a great experience for Jason Kelly. He thanks him for his trust in being able to tell the story and shares his vision from rehearsal to stage.

Kelly shares that Fragakis has been receptive to his ideas and supportive in his visual creations, utilizing his strengths and strengthening his weaknesses. Jason has learned a lot in a short period of time and has loved the experience, welcoming the remaining days of intense stress and build-up to curtain call. Jason Kelly would like to thank George, Kirsty Black, Helen Webster, Kieran Sing, Diego Gutiérrez, Nicole Behan, and everyone who has made the festival happen!

"Our House is Condemned" will be featured at the Everyman Playhouse in EV1 this Friday and Saturday (21st & 22nd of July 2023). There are three shows, so there are plenty of opportunities to see this intense adaptation of classical Greek theatre.

Words by: Grace Morrison

Artwork by: Everyman & Playhouse