A searing reimagining of Euripides’ drama
Troy has fallen. The city lies in ruins. Queen Hecuba sits in mourning on her husband’s throne, holding his severed head in her hands. The bodies of her sons lie at her feet. Yet three of her children remain alive, and the youngest, Polydorus, heir to the throne, is in hiding from the conqueror Agamemnon.
Hecuba, by the acclaimed Irish playwright Marina Carr and directed by Helena Sandström Cruz, is a modern and impassioned reimagining of Euripides’ drama. It is a timeless exploration of the civilian cost of war, of relentless cycles of violence, and of conflicts that leave no victors.
The play moves fluidly between narration and enactment, allowing the audience to shift perspective. Characters on both sides are given space to express a wide range of emotions: doubt, shame, anger, grief and empathy.
In this production, the searing text is matched by bold visual imagery and newly composed music by Stefan Johansson.
The cast features Marta Andersson-Larson, Johan Friberg, Mia Höglund-Melin, Emil Ljungestig, Jesper Söderblom and Oméya Simbizi from the theatre’s ensemble, alongside Casper Karlsson, intern from the Theatre Academy at Luleå University of Technology.
Helena Sandström Cruz is an actor and director who has staged both classical and contemporary work at venues including Uppsala Stadsteater and Dalateatern. In autumn 2023 she directed Euripides’ Backanterna (The Bacchae) at Borås Stadsteater, and in autumn 2025 she directed Macbeth at the same venue. During her Master’s studies at Stockholm University of the Arts, she focused in particular on the work of Euripides.
First production performed at The Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon by The Royal Shakespeare Company 24th September 2015. Play published by The Gallery Press 2015. This production has been licensed by arrangement with The Agency (London).
