THE PENELOPIAD Comes to York Theatre Royal in October

York Theatre Royal has announced a major UK revival of Margaret Atwood’s The Penelopiad. Adapted from her critically acclaimed novella of the same name, this feminist retelling of Homer’s The Odyssey gives voice to the silenced Penelope and her chorus of maids.

Directed by York Theatre Royal’s Creative Director Juliet Forster, the production will open on 14 October, with previews from 10 October, and runs until 24 October 2026 at York Theatre Royal.

The Penelopiad premiered at the Swan Theatre, Stratford-Upon-Avon, in July 2007 in a co-production between the Royal Shakespeare Company and Canada’s National Arts Centre. This marks the first major UK revival of the show since that production.

Juliet Forster said today, “Margaret Atwood is such a phenomenal writer – she’s clever, witty, subversive and her insights into human dynamics are acutely well observed. The Penelopiad is a funny, moving, fast paced, visual feast, a classical tale told through a contemporary lens. The epic, heroic story of The Odyssey will never look the same again! I am thrilled we will be staging it here at York Theatre Royal, and I can’t wait to get started on the show.”