POPODYSSEY Comes to Scarborough's Stephen Joseph Theatre
PopOdyssey can be seen at the SJT at 7.30pm on Friday 30 May.
By: Stephi Wild Apr. 29, 2025
A new dance play that collides ancient Greece with modern pop culture is coming to Scarborough's Stephen Joseph Theatre next month. PopOdyssey, at the SJT on Friday 30 May, is a high energy, playful and emotional reworking of Homer's Odyssey, told through text, storytelling and movement.
PopOdyssey is written and directed by Joseph Mercier, created and choreographed in collaboration with an ensemble cast of emerging artists. Set in a world that blends ancient Greek with modern life, it tells the story of a young woman, Telemachus, in search of her father, Odysseus, who disappeared after The Trojan war.
As she retraces his journey, she gains new understanding about her father, herself and what it means to be a Gen Z entering adulthood and trying to find one's place in the current world of shifting realities, crisis and war.
Featuring an ensemble of 14 young artists playing over 50 different characters, PopOdyssey transports audience members to a visually and sonically immersive world: picture an ancient-Greek-themed music video. PopOdyssey is both a play and a dance show, combining text and dancing (like a musical without singing).
PopOdyssey premiered at The Leeds Corn Exchange in October 2024 to over 3,000 people as part of Leeds Light Night. Glitterbomb Dancers and the Northern School of Contemporary Dance have joined together to co-present this tour to Northern venues.
The Odyssey is an epic poem by ancient Greek poet Homer that tells the story of Odysseus trying to return home after the Trojan War. Written almost 2,000 years ago, the poem has resurfaced lately in the cultural zeitgeist, including two major films (the recently released The Return starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche, and Christopher Nolan's recently announced adaptation starring Matt Damon). In PopOdyssey, The Odyssey is an allegory used to explore themes such as war, crisis, internet cultures, hyperrealities, migration and over-tourism. The show invites audiences to rethink ancient myths through a 21st century lens.
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