About the Play:

Ransacking Troy is a full-length drama by Erin Shields. A radical retelling of the ancient Greco-Roman epics, Ransacking Troy is a bold and brilliant reimagining of the most famous war story of all time, where women take centre stage as the rightful heroes.

Ransacking Troy retells the epic stories of "The Iliad" and "The Odyssey" through the eyes of its female characters. After nearly a decade of the Trojan War, the women of Greece are growing restless. Led by the indomitable Penelope (wife of the war hero Odysseus) and the fierce Clytemnestra (queen of Mycenae and wife of the military commander King Agamemnon), a band of Grecian women defy the odds and bravely set sail for the shores of Troy, determined to end the conflict themselves. The journey is fraught with danger – bloodthirsty warriors, mythical beasts, and the capricious will of the gods. But these women are no mere bystanders in the tales of men. Get ready to embark on the greatest adventure that Homer and Virgil never told. In her signature revisionist style, award-winning playwright Erin Shields brings a refreshing feminist twist to this thrilling odyssey, confronting the habitual violence and disregard for women's lives that persist during times of war. A mythical tale for modern times, Ransacking Troy envisions what happens when women band together to build a better world.

Ransacking Troy premiered in 2025 at Canada's Stratford Shakespeare Festival and was a huge success in their Tom Patterson Theatre.

Cast: 9 female

What people say:

"Another canonical classic successfully ransacked for gold by Shields." — The Globe and Mail

"The text is a godsend for university and college drama departments looking for large-scale, ideas-driven, female-centric plays." — Intermission Magazine

About the Playwright:

Erin Shields is a Canadian playwright and actor who trained at Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama in London, England. She is a founding member of Groundwater Productions through which she creates, develops, and produces much of her work. She is best known for her play If We Were Birds, which won the prestigious Governor General Award for Drama.