A cross-country tour of a reimagined version of the Greek myth; the marriage of the Goddess Thetis to the mortal Peleus during the suppression of the Goddess civilizations, the rise of patriarchy and takeover by the autocrat and supreme ruler, Zeus, The Narrative examines how the stories we tell shape our thinking. When the original actress playing Thetis is suddenly replaced the new actress challenges the patriarchal systems that have informed the myth, the actors begin to experience the impact this story of power and conquest has on their backstage lives. With the rise of the #Metoo movement and challenges to capitalistic patriarchy. The play forces each of the actors to confront how the stories we tell about love, sex, power and consent shape our everyday lives and relationships.
The Narrative premiered at Factory Theatre, Toronto ON, in June 2023 under the title Armadillos
Keywords: Greek myths, Goddess, love, patriarchy, feminism, social systems, dating apps, aging, youth
Genre: Drama, Dark Comedy
Acts: 1
Run time: 90 minutes
Suitable for students 14+
Content notes: Contains mature content, sexual content, strong language
Cast size: 4 actors
Male roles: 2
Female roles: 2
Casting notes: The four actors perform the characters who are in the play within a play and also themselves post performance.
"This is exciting and disturbing theatre. It’s sometimes very funny and sometimes quite shocking. The story has multiple twists but a solid central core and the execution is excellent."
- operaramblings
"“The stories we tell shape our thinking,” we are told, and the honoring of that framework by Wagner rings true and cleverly in Factory Theatre‘s Armadillos multi-layered unpacking."
-T2COnline
"Tough skin, soft belly: it makes sense Colleen Wagner has named her latest play after such a selectively vulnerable creature."
- Intermission Magazine