Performances based on, drawing on, inspired or provoked by, or simply invoking Greek and Roman stories, plays, myths, or iconography have been a part of Philadelphia’s cultural life since before the American Revolution.  Here are a few from the 2014 Philly Fringe Festival; quotations come from the festival’s program.  See also fringearts.com.  The Fringe is a good thing in September–go and see.

Antigone Sr./Twenty Looks or Paris is Burning at The Judson Church
“Antigone with all male performers–except it’s the here and now and there is the runway and there is the pop culture and designer names and voguing and there is sexuality and strutting and grief and dance history and deep bass.”

Living in Exile: a retelling of the Iliad
“A single act of compassion . . . inside this odyssey of blistering hearts living in exile.  They are not cast in stone.”

Oedipus The Musical
“When a herpes plague spreads through the city, King Oedipus is forced to discover the incestuous roots of his dysfunctional family tree . . . songs like ‘YOLO Apollo’, ‘Hashtag Plague’ and ‘Ballad of a Cougar’.”

The Rape of Lucrece
“. . . one-man interpretation of Shakespeare’s epic poem . . .”

They Call Me Arethusa
“Arethusa guides you spoken-word-style through the stories of her Greek mythological sisters and the true testimonials of modern women.”

AESOP
“. . . an imaginative an immersive adaptation of the famed fables by Aesop.”