Euripides' Medea

Reviews / Votes

'Michael Ewans has produced ... an elegant, thoughtful, careful, and moving text of Euripides' Medea ... [and] a splendid analysis of the play that will make it much, much easier for those who wish to create a production of this important and challenging play ... Ewans discusses the various challenges and how these challenges can be dealt with by contemporary practitioners ... Ewans' excellent work deserves to be read, considered, and brought to life in theaters everywhere.' - Mary-Kay Gamel, University of California Santa Cruz, USA

"In embarking on the challenging task of creating another translation of Euripides' Medea, E. followed two main principles: (1) to remain as faithful as possible to the original text and (2) to create a version that is actable, making it both appealing and accessible to a modern audience. E. succeeds in this, producing a translation that is clear, concise and to the point. On the one hand he maintains the brevity of the Greek, its occasional ambiguity and often even the grammatical construction... On the other hand, E. does not shy away from interpreting, to elucidate the meaning of particular passages... I would highly recommend this book both for students on Classics and theatre courses and for use in production. Preferences for Medea translations will vary, but E.'s emphasis on actability and clarity ensures his work a special place among the options. " - Classical Review