Iphigenia yn Sblot – a furious analysis of our society

Iphigenia yn Sblot, Gary Owen’s Iphigenia in Splott, will tour 11 venues across Wales in August and September this year. The Welsh language adaptation will then premiere at the National Eisteddfod in Pontypridd followed by a run of performances at Sherman Theatre before heading here to the Torch Theatre on 18 September.

Seren Hamilton will take the title role in her first major performance while completing her final year in Acting at Rose Bruford College of Performing Arts. Alice Eklund will direct this new production nearly a decade after it first became an international smash-hit.

The one-woman play Iphigenia in Splott is a furious analysis of our society and the hard-bitten lives it bears. Since its premiere at Sherman Theatre in 2015, it has won the James Tait Black Prize for Drama 2016 and the Best New Play Award at the UK Theatre Awards 2015, with the original production touring to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, across Wales and the UK and as far as New York and Berlin. In 2022, the play was re-staged by Lyric Hammersmith to great acclaim. It has been translated into and performed in several languages the world over.

Director, Alice Eklund is excited to be part of this one-woman show.

She said: “I’m so excited to direct this production. Iphigenia in Splott played a huge part in my introduction to new writing and I can’t wait to see Effie’s story come to life in Welsh. Doing this play in this way feels so timely, so relevant and so needed right now.

“I’m so grateful for the opportunity to do such an iconic play in Sherman’s Studio and across Wales. Gary’s writing with Branwen’s translation is a perfect match and hearing it out loud gave me the same energised, fiery feeling that I got upon the first read all those years ago. I’m so ready to get started with the team on this new production of a play that is at the forefront of new writing in Wales. Building a new world around Effie, taking us on the journey with her, here and now.”

This production contains strong language, sexual references, sensitive themes including grief and neonatal loss as well as scenes which some audience members may find upsetting.

Iphigenia yn Sblot will be performed at the Torch Theatre on Wednesday 18 September at 7.30pm. Ticket prices: Adult: £16. Concession: £14. Under 26: £10. To book your tickets or for further information, contact the Box Office on 01646 695267 or click here.