Here’s
to all you old gods
You
are so far away
But
you linger near
In
the coolest shadows
And
you breathe the moonlit air
Homer's
second great epic is set after the war in Troy and focuses on one of it’s heros
- Odysseus. Odysseus is tired of war and wandering. He wishes to return to his
wife and son in Ithaca but gods and nymphs conspire to delay him. At last he is
given refuge by some people who might help him but he's going to have to tell
them a damn good story.
click on image to enlarge
This
telling of Homer's "The Odyssey" reduces a twenty hour epic to an hour
and 10 minutes. Although it does not include every scene and episode, it tries
to be true to the story as a whole and presents “The Odyssey” as a coherent
unity. The great god Zeus, who is something of a gangster, oversees the
progress of Odysseus while the other main storyteller is Odysseus himself, with
the goddess Athena putting in an occasional appearance. There is some homespun
theology as well as contemplation of the nature of marriage and hearth and a
proposal that “refuge” lies at the very heart of what we mean by
“civilization”.
Peter
Fernon is a singer and storyteller who earns most of his money these days as a
busker. He has worked as a storyteller for many years, first as a children’s
storyteller, working mainly in primary schools and more recently as a
storyteller for adults.
Other
productions for adult audiences are “The Epic of Gilgamesh”, “The Wheel” ( a
family saga ) “Doctor” ( the story of Trentham’s famous Dr Gweneth Wisewould ).
“Holding Heaven and Earth Together” (about Trentham’s spud diggers”) "New World
Dreaming' ( a story about Italian migration).
You
can contact Peter at pfernon@dodo.com.au
Thank you for sharing your event with us Peter.
Thank you for sharing your event with us Peter.
Full program for WORDS IN WINTER: HERE
Here is Peter caught in action at a House Concert in Melbourne performing "The Epic of Gilgamesh".
