‘Medea’ At Qtopia Is A Genuinely Bold Reimagining

It would be easy to say that we’re in a bit of a renaissance of retelling Greek myths at the moment, with a David Wenham-led staging of An Iliad hitting Sydney recently and a new rendition of The Odyssey headed to our screens come July. 

Yet in reality, these stories always have interesting musings by the very virtue of who’s doing the retelling, as proven by a new and explicitly queer interpretation of Medea that’s playing now at Qtopia Sydney.

If you’re familiar with the myth of Medea – the scorned wife of Jason whose mistreatment led to tragedy – the broad strokes of this production will be quite familiar. But this show, put on by Visage Productions and written by Ian Steen, puts an interesting spin upon the story that explicitly points ire towards a society that ordains heterosexuality when it’d be a lot easier to let people love who they want.

Medea unfurls after the legendary voyage of Jason (Joshua Morel) and the Argonauts, where the hero’s wandering eye has seen him forsake his wife for the men of Corinth in carnal matters. A demigod from a foreign land, Medea (Cathy Bates) is soon cast out of the city for her witchy ways while her husband marries a younger woman, sparking in her a desire for vengeance that can only be quenched with blood.

Theatre Visage’s Medea feels genuinely fresh

The greatest strength of Medea as a show lies in its two lead performances – Cathy Bates as the title character, and Joshua Morel as Jason. While the Substation venue the show is staged in may feel quaint at first, their talents make the story come alive and wholly fill the room with the scale that this tragedy deserves, alongside a wider cast who make a great ensemble.

But Bates is due for particularly high praise, rendering Medea as a woman most tragic, forced to make decisions that will render her irredeemable in the eyes of history. The decision to cast an older performer as this maligned sorceress is a genuinely interesting one, and Bates rises to the occasion with a layered performance that makes the show worth seeing by itself.

This performance is hardly the only great element of Medea, though. I found the reworked script by Ian Steen to be delightfully written, giving its actors plenty to chew on as they navigated the increasing complexities of this tale. Its queer angle that openly blames the pursuit of power and a truly fascinating deployment of costumes and jewelry make this show feel unique; a feat in itself for the retelling of a storied myth. 

There are some occasional mishaps in the production, but overall this rendition of Medea is a genuinely delightful affair that’s a great showcase for why you should go see more independent theatre. Don’t miss this one while it’s still playing at The Substation – you won’t regret it.

Medea is playing until Saturday May 23rd in The Substation at Qtopia Sydney.