Off the top of my
head, this is the fifth retelling of the myth of Orestes (and/or Elektra; they were
siblings after all) that I have seen in the past couple of years. There is
nothing necessarily wrong with that, except that I am still confused as to the
finer points of what actually happens in the myth, traditionally-speaking. Some
of the retellings, like Kit Brookman’s Small
and Tired chose to set their action decades after the events, while
others, like Elektra/Orestes
earlier this year thrust us right into the thick of it.
Winner of the 2013
Patrick White Playwrights’ Award, Anna Barnes’ Minus
One Sister is based off of Sophocles’ version of the story, and unfolds
in a fractured whirlwind of naturalistic dialogue scenes and chorus scenes. The
story of a family – three sisters, their younger brother, and their parents – as
much as the unspeakable crimes the parents commit, and the siblings’ need for
retribution, Minus One Sister is a furious
and fast-paced play, but I wonder if its swirl of words actually detracts from
telling its stories.
