Blood Guilt: Orestes on Trial

Blood Guilt: Orestes on Trial freely adapted by Bob Gonzalez from The Oresteia by Aeschylus

Performed by The Online Stage

A modern adaptation of The Oresteia of Aeschylus, the only surviving ancient Athenian trilogy. Across three plays, Greece's first major playwright tells the story of the cursed House of Atreus, where the bloody sins of the family's ancestors are visited upon four succeeding generations. After a series of horrific past crimes by his ancestors, Orestes is driven to matricide and for that is relentlessly pursued by the Furies, underworld demons intent on revenging the spirit of his mother. He flees Argos for sanctuary at Athens, where the city's patron goddess, Athena, decides to establish the first tribunal - a human jury. Apollo, the god of Truth, defends Orestes against the vengeful Furies. Faithful to the spirit of the original, this two-act version offers a contemporary perspective on the dilemma of conflicted loyalties.

Cast:

Athena - Lillian Rachel

Orestes - Lance Rasmussen

Elektra - Amanda Friday

Klytemnestra - Trisha Rose

Apollo - Huw Brentnall

Kassandra - P. J. Morgan

Agamemnon - Blythe Melin

Aigisthos - Tyler Hyrchuk

Calchas - Alan Weyman

Pylades - Andy Harrington

Iphigenia - Sarah Bacaller

Furies - Elizabeth Klett, Lee Ann Howlett, Sara Sheckells

Argos Women - Anna Grace, Jennie VanderLugt, Michelle Marie

Elders - Russell Gold, Ted Wenskus, Ron Altman

Narration by Bob Gonzalez

Audio edited by Amanda Friday and Bob Gonzalez