Pieces of Penelope

by Gina Femia

Odysseus fought a war and got lost on an adventure; Penelope waited. Owen is fighting a war; Penny waits. Men have been going off to have adventures since the beginning of time; and the women have often been the ones who are left behind. What makes the wait- and the fight - worthwhile? Pieces of Penelope is the story of how four women’s stories are intertwined throughout the course of history.

Odysseus fought a war and got lost on an adventure; Penelope waited. Owen is fighting a war; Penny waits. Men have been going off to have adventures since the beginning of time; and the women have often been the ones who are left behind. What makes the wait- and the fight - worthwhile? Pieces of Penelope is the story of how four women’s stories are intertwined throughout the course of history.

  • Inquire About Rights
  • Recommend
  • Download
  • Save to Reading List

Pieces of Penelope

Recommended by

  • Francesca Pazniokas: Pieces of Penelope by Gina Femia
    “

    A gorgeous piece about longing, grief, passion and patience, knitting back and forth across millennia. Poetic and piercing.

    A gorgeous piece about longing, grief, passion and patience, knitting back and forth across millennia. Poetic and piercing.

    ”
  • Shaun Leisher: Pieces of Penelope by Gina Femia
    “

    War plays that draw connections between ancient cultures and today is not new but this take on it is so fresh and hopefully just the start of more plays that look at this oftentimes forgotten community of soldier's wives. Femia creates complex women and allows them to wrestle with they sacrifices they've made. These women try to hold it together and be the model military wives but this play lets us in behind the facade and shos just how timeless these unfair expectations on women really are.

    War plays that draw connections between ancient cultures and today is not new but this take on it is so fresh and hopefully just the start of more plays that look at this oftentimes forgotten community of soldier's wives. Femia creates complex women and allows them to wrestle with they sacrifices they've made. These women try to hold it together and be the model military wives but this play lets us in behind the facade and shos just how timeless these unfair expectations on women really are.

    ”
  • Kara Lee Corthron: Pieces of Penelope by Gina Femia
    “

    Painful, thoughtful, beautiful. A lovely and spare play on Homer's epic poem."

    Painful, thoughtful, beautiful. A lovely and spare play on Homer's epic poem."

    ”

Development History

  • Workshop, The Alumnae Theatre, New Play Festival, 2013
  • Workshop, DanceWave, 2012