Music-makers and spoken-word storytellers Alexander Wright and Phil Grainger have been touring their mythologically-inspired, immersive theatre productions across the globe since 2016. And they’ve hit a rich seam, with their acclaimed show Orpheus still touring and new piece Helios recently added to their schedule.

The Gods The Gods The Gods opens with the old gods gathering in a London caff. The heights of Mount Olympus are a distant memory as Zeus, Hermes and the rest of the crew face down obsolescence in a world that seems to have lost its faith. Two young lovers fall hard for each other, only to find the intensity fading as the years pass. A woman sits on a beach under the stars, cradling the ashes of her life partner. A man stands on the edge of a bridge in the grip of hopelessness and despair.

Cunningly interweaving the four storylines of Gods, Lovers, Sky and Bridge, the show sweeps its audience through a powerful exploration of the times in our lives when we find ourselves reaching for the divine. The precarious intensity of love, the wrenching despair of grief, the hopelessness of depression – these are the moments humans clutch for answers, for comfort, for reassurance. But are the gods still there? Do they have anything to offer a human race that seems to have lost its faith in the existence of anything beyond the world we know?

Performed as a 12-track album, The Gods The Gods The Gods has the crowd on their feet from the beginning, the gorgeous Spiegel Zelt providing the perfect intimate dance floor as the beats kick off and melodies start to soar.

With a compelling blend of spoken word, heartfelt melodies and driving bass, Wright, Grainger and Lucie Turner keep the audience moving for the whole performance, weaving through the crowd and inviting participation in a way that feels easy and natural. Even the introduction of heavier themes is eased into with audience consent.

The line between poetry and song lyric has always been far from clear, and for just over an hour this powerful set blurs it into insignificance, creating a dynamic meld of word and beat that offers the audience hope that the divine is still here and within reach.

The Gods The Gods The Gods is at the Spiegel Zelt in the Garden of Unearthly Delights until March 3.

Read a review of Helios here, and more 2024 Adelaide Fringe coverage here on InReview.

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