The thing to understand about Greek drama is that it is outsized. Gods walk among men influencing actions, decisions, and circumstances; everyone is tortured by the dilemmas of living with their ambitions, and their hubris, no matter how big or small, is punished. The Greeks were trying to make sense of a world they viewed as cruel and capricious, which is why the gods in their religion were petty, jealous, impulsive and vindictive. As a result, they used the theater as a tool to explain man's behavior and how the gods respond and interact with them. more ›

There's a rotting foot at the heart of The Cure at Troy (through May 3 at the Rep, tickets: $10-$59); you can almost hear Philoctetes's leg oozing as he walks. The stench is described well enough to draw flies to the theatre. And when he loses his mind with pain, screaming about his wound cracking open, blood everywhere, you'd really like to be elsewhere, and maybe less nauseous. more ›