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What is An Iliad?
An Iliad is a one-person adaptation of Homer's The Iliad by Lisa Peterson and Denis O'Hare. I have had the privilege of performing this thrilling, 95-minute show for over 7 years across the country and in England.
My journey to this project began while working as a Directing Assistant at McCarter Theatre. I read a play they had produced the previous season called An Iliad. I fell in love. Lisa Peterson and Denis O’Hare had brilliantly adapted this classic epic for a contemporary solo performer. I felt a visceral connection. I had to perform this piece. The Iliad was the first book I read in college. A kids version sat on my bookshelf my entire childhood. After finishing an internship at McCarter Theatre, I approached #theaternow with my proposal: Help me mount this show. Seven years later, I have performed it across the U.S. and in England, with the most recent production by the Lawrence Arts Center. My Previous Performances of An Iliad
· Trenton, NJ - Originally produced by #theaternow
· Tampa, FL - University of South Florida, Humanities Institute · Duluth, MN - College of St. Scholastica · Cockermouth, UK - Kirkgate Center · Phoenix, AZ - ASU Kerr Cultural Center · Blacksburg, VA - Virginia Tech · Radford, VA - Virginia Governor's School · Lawrence, KS - Lawrence Arts Center |
About the Play
“An Iliad is a modern-day retelling of Homer’s classic. Poetry and humor, the ancient tale of the Trojan War and the modern world collide in this captivating theatrical experience. The setting is simple: the empty theater. The time is now: the present moment. The lone figure onstage is a storyteller — possibly Homer, possibly one of the many bards who followed in his footsteps. He is fated to tell this story throughout history.”
Reviews of Original Production
“Spellbinding … Smartly conceived and impressively executed, AN ILIAD relates an age-old story that resonates with tragic meaning today … As he talks about ruined civilizations and how blind rage can overwhelm people whether they are on a battlefield or merely cut off by a car on the highway, the poet asks viewers, ‘Do you see?’ Indeed we do.”
--The New York Times “AN ILIAD is pure theater: shocking, glorious, primal and deeply satisfying.” --Time Out New York “Intimate, unstuffy, timely, accessible — while preserving a sense of timelessness, and grandeur, [AN ILIAD] enthralls and pierces your heart with images of fallen warriors, bereft wives and parents, and the bitter landscape of a long, fruitless, uselessly barbaric war.” --The Seattle Times |
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Reviews of My Production
"riveting one-man show"
"Tobin ends atop a table in an ecstatic apotheosis of bloody fury" --Duluth News Tribune "Dan’s performance of An Iliad keeps coming back into my mind... I had assumed he would be good, but I really wasn’t prepared for how much more than good he was." --Marc Powers (School of Theatre and Dance, University of South Florida) “Wow! I've just watched a fantastic performance of An Iliad from Daniel Tobin - I still have the goose pimples after an astounding performance!” “An Iliad was a stunning and captivating performance” --Facebook audience responses |
Trailer
Production Photos
Courtesy of Ian Shelanskey & Steve Sachs
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Video Clips
The Death of Patroclus
Video courtesy of ASU School of Film, Dance & Theatre |
Video Clips
Mourning the Death of Hector
Video courtesy of ASU School of Film, Dance & Theatre |
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Contact |
If you would like to present An Iliad, please feel free to contact me at DanielBirdTobin@gmail.com, or click below for more contact options.
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