Bacchae – National Theatre

Nima Taleghani’s Bacchae is an explicitly pro-women reading of the Euripedes’ tragedy, if one that feels slightly dated (and not because of the Ancient Greek setting). It flips the focus of the play to its Greek chorus: the women of the Bacchae narrate, while the traditionally leading Dionysos, Agave and Pentheus become funnier, more ridiculous and more pitiable characters.

The chorus of Bacchae is led by Vida, brought to gritty and sparkling life by Clare Perkins. Dionysos’ foster mother, she guides them through the mountains to arrive at Thebes, where they plan to liberate every woman from patriarchy, join their cult, and drink, suck and fuck to her heart’s desire.

Indhu Rubasingham’s production and Taleghani’s script are both undeniably fun. The atmosphere in the Olivier is joyful – it’s nice to see jokes catering to a Gen Z audience. The Bacchae are delightfully unsubtle about what they want and feel appropriately young in their attitudes towards life and politics (with the exception of Vida). Not every joke lands, but the boldness of the humour, especially in that space, is key to what works with this production.

Momentum is held through the play by frequent musical interludes, sitting somewhere between spoken word and rap. Dionysos’ (Ukweli Roach) first appearance onstage is a fantastically camp rap number – here, he’s the god of rhyme as well as wine. Roach’s energy and skill as dancer inject a West End musical type of life into the show, although it’s both appropriate and a shame that this dance number should outshine those of the Bacchae themselves earlier on.

In its mission to highlight the importance of community through a group protagonist, the production succeeds sometimes better than others. The benefits of communal intelligence, call-and-response and shared experience are somewhat overshadowed by the group’s infatuation with Dionysos. This is addressed briefly towards the end, when one of the Bacchae points out that they might have succeeded better in their quest for women’s liberation had they not been led by a man, but generally it feels unaddressed. The Bacchae’s agency is mainly derived from Vida – many of the others feel lacking in depth.

Taleghani’s script has some of the hallmarks of a debut playwright – at times it feels close to pantomime in its exposition. This feels sort of in keeping with the spirit of Greek tragedy, but it would be nice to see something a bit tighter to hold the audience in suspense at moments of genuine horror (see Agave eating her own son).

Although it’s missing a few of the ingredients that make the original play so great, Bacchae is a rip-roaring ride through Thebes to a distinctly modern soundtrack, and a fantastic introduction to Greek tragedy for the uninitiated.

Reviewer: Holly Sewell

Reviewed: 1st October 2025

North West End UK Rating: