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The Love of the Nightingale
Book by Timberlake Wertenbaker
66 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1989
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
May 11, 2009
Based on the Greek Myth of Philomele. This is an extremely powerful, theatrical play. Absolutely love her use of separate male and female choruses. Ms Wertenbaker is one of the few playwrights who "really" write for the stage. It's an extraordinarily moving and tragic piece of writing.
Don't wish to ruin it for anyone. Read it when you get a chance.
Don't wish to ruin it for anyone. Read it when you get a chance.
March 3, 2023
4,75: This play left me thinking, what is worse? Keeping silent or speaking up? It also left me needing therapy.
The Dramatic Publishing Company edition of this play (not sure if there are any other editions come to think of it) includes Wertenbaker's definition of myth in the blurb. She defines myth as 'the oblique image of an unwanted truth reverberating through time'. If you want a super short, enigmatic summary of this play, this is it. Wertenbaker makes us question the function of myth through time, in society, in literature, and on stage and shows us the power and significance of using one's voice to call out injustice and crime even when the odds are against us. The Love of the Nightingale is a very strong play that does not shy away from ugly truths, with strong themes, strong female characters, and an ending that makes your blood run cold.
Wertenbaker reworks the myth of Philomela, as told by Ovid, in a way that gives voice to women's genuine concerns, desires, and aspirations and in a way that empowers them to seek justice without being villainized in the process. Although the radical feminist interpretation of the end of the play is highly debatable, as is my understanding, no one can deny that it is powerful and that it leaves you breathless. I'm not entirely confident in supporting this reading which, summarized, conveys that the results of ending male dominance through literal physical violence are hope, transformation, and peace. If you read this in a naturalistic way, you'll soon understand that it is not as simple as that and that ethics are on the line but if you read it as a symbolic act of freeing oneself from the clutches of patriarchy and regaining control over one's life then it is really a powerful ending with a strong message.
The 4,75 rating has nothing to do with the text itself. The text itself is magnificent. But, personally, I cannot bring myself to judge a play based on the text alone so would like to wait for the opportunity to see it performed, if such opportunity ever comes my way :) That is to say, I mark this review as a work in progress :)
The Dramatic Publishing Company edition of this play (not sure if there are any other editions come to think of it) includes Wertenbaker's definition of myth in the blurb. She defines myth as 'the oblique image of an unwanted truth reverberating through time'. If you want a super short, enigmatic summary of this play, this is it. Wertenbaker makes us question the function of myth through time, in society, in literature, and on stage and shows us the power and significance of using one's voice to call out injustice and crime even when the odds are against us. The Love of the Nightingale is a very strong play that does not shy away from ugly truths, with strong themes, strong female characters, and an ending that makes your blood run cold.
Wertenbaker reworks the myth of Philomela, as told by Ovid, in a way that gives voice to women's genuine concerns, desires, and aspirations and in a way that empowers them to seek justice without being villainized in the process. Although the radical feminist interpretation of the end of the play is highly debatable, as is my understanding, no one can deny that it is powerful and that it leaves you breathless. I'm not entirely confident in supporting this reading which, summarized, conveys that the results of ending male dominance through literal physical violence are hope, transformation, and peace. If you read this in a naturalistic way, you'll soon understand that it is not as simple as that and that ethics are on the line but if you read it as a symbolic act of freeing oneself from the clutches of patriarchy and regaining control over one's life then it is really a powerful ending with a strong message.
The 4,75 rating has nothing to do with the text itself. The text itself is magnificent. But, personally, I cannot bring myself to judge a play based on the text alone so would like to wait for the opportunity to see it performed, if such opportunity ever comes my way :) That is to say, I mark this review as a work in progress :)
April 27, 2019
This reads like it would be interesting on stage. The part after landing on Thrace reminds me very much of the Tempest. The captain is a nice guy. It turns from comedy to tragedy as the plot progresses. One line is very out of place.
April 8, 2021
the society if tereus could have just kept it in his pants (malum görsel)
March 8, 2023
I didn’t understand vast majority of it but philomelies speech was so moving. I think this would be so good if I actually understood what was going on
June 6, 2025
Designed and played as ancient Greek tragedy, the play has several strands and themes interwoven in the text. Most ostensibly, it is about the rape of Philomele by Tereus, her sister Procne's husband. Incest, rape and infanticide in the most approved manner of Greek tragedies form the framework of the play.
But it is also about “words,” the words women need to express their emotions. For Procne, who was born in Athens, the silence of a semi-barbarous Thrace is almost unendurable. As she tells her waiting women, who cannot understand why she is so impatient with them when they all speak the same language:
“The words are the same, but point to different things. We aspire to clarity in sound, you like the silences in between.”
Yet words are only part of this story.
Silenced forever is the voice of Philomele; and beyond her, the voices of the people and soldiery of Thrace, unable to speak of their misery. They are sick of the wars that Tereus engages in, and which gives him personal glory, but only a tyrant’s rule over them. Political rebellion is not part of the Greek myth about Philomele the nightingale, but it is very much a part of Wertenbaker’s play, and it is led by Philomele herself. Everyone about her, the soldiers and the sailors, including the ship's captain, as well as the two Choruses, see or sense Tereus’s growing passion for Philomele. It is his rape of the girl whom he was bound to protect by all laws of hospitality, of the gods and of man, and the murder of the ship's captain, which sets the seal on their hostility.
The grotesque killing of Itys is another symbol of female anger that could well have been scripted out, but the original calls for the sacrifice. For Wertenbaker this is convenient, as the lack of respect that Itys displays at such a young age for either the rights or privacy of women and their holiest ceremonies that is a forewarning of the man Itys is likely to grow up to be.
An interesting feature is the play-within-the-play device, used twice in ‘The Love of a Nightingale.’ The first time is the performance of Euripides’s play ‘Phaedra,’ which gives Tereus the excuse, if he needed one, to blame Aphrodite for his actions. The second is the play with the dolls which Philomele uses to tell her sister what had happened. Wertenbaker enjoyed the idea of metafiction and has used it as a plot or as a means to illustrate a theme more than once in her work.
But it is also about “words,” the words women need to express their emotions. For Procne, who was born in Athens, the silence of a semi-barbarous Thrace is almost unendurable. As she tells her waiting women, who cannot understand why she is so impatient with them when they all speak the same language:
“The words are the same, but point to different things. We aspire to clarity in sound, you like the silences in between.”
Yet words are only part of this story.
Silenced forever is the voice of Philomele; and beyond her, the voices of the people and soldiery of Thrace, unable to speak of their misery. They are sick of the wars that Tereus engages in, and which gives him personal glory, but only a tyrant’s rule over them. Political rebellion is not part of the Greek myth about Philomele the nightingale, but it is very much a part of Wertenbaker’s play, and it is led by Philomele herself. Everyone about her, the soldiers and the sailors, including the ship's captain, as well as the two Choruses, see or sense Tereus’s growing passion for Philomele. It is his rape of the girl whom he was bound to protect by all laws of hospitality, of the gods and of man, and the murder of the ship's captain, which sets the seal on their hostility.
The grotesque killing of Itys is another symbol of female anger that could well have been scripted out, but the original calls for the sacrifice. For Wertenbaker this is convenient, as the lack of respect that Itys displays at such a young age for either the rights or privacy of women and their holiest ceremonies that is a forewarning of the man Itys is likely to grow up to be.
An interesting feature is the play-within-the-play device, used twice in ‘The Love of a Nightingale.’ The first time is the performance of Euripides’s play ‘Phaedra,’ which gives Tereus the excuse, if he needed one, to blame Aphrodite for his actions. The second is the play with the dolls which Philomele uses to tell her sister what had happened. Wertenbaker enjoyed the idea of metafiction and has used it as a plot or as a means to illustrate a theme more than once in her work.
January 9, 2018
Accomplishes what most modernized myths fail to accomplish - it tells a story in beautiful though contemporary language, and tells a truth of today without hitting you over the head with it. Beautiful and painful.
March 6, 2018
This was an easy read and a raelly interesting one too. It was nice to see a re-telling of such a powerful story. It really brought the characters to life.
April 29, 2018
haunting & beautiful. Brilliant female parts. Great example of mythic genre.
November 29, 2018
I thought I would hate this story, but I read it, and then my daughter performed in this play as a part of her college's theatre program. It moved me deeply. Haunting. Powerful.
Read
March 25, 2020My body bleeding, my spirit ripped open, and I am the cause? - Philomele
March 19, 2023
A lovely retelling of a Greek tragedy, does begin to become depression Porn and none of the characters are really realistic but it’s a pretty cool vibe. Would love to see this play live
January 1, 2024
Plot is just so wrong and gross. I felt horrible for the female characters and what they had to go through.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 13, 2024
This was really weird. Had to read it for my uni course and I was weirded out. Why do they tak about it in the play as if it’s a play???I have too many questions
January 3, 2026
i hate men
December 30, 2016
This year and last year, I bought and read a handful of scripts to plays I've seen in Chicago in the past. This one is one of my favorites because I love Timberlake Wertenbaker.
It's a slightly modernized (it certainly feels that way somehow, even though there's still a 'chorus' and none of the names or settings have changed) retelling of an old Ovid play/myth, but with a more feminist perspective. In the original myth, Philomele is turned into a Nightengale, and Wertenbaker uses this to explore how her literal speechlessness echoes the "speechlessness" that must occur when you move away from your family to a country where you know no one and do not speak the language. It really works. I'm not entirely sure if that was the intended interpretation of the original story of Philomele or if it's something new to Wertenbaker's adaptation, but it's fantastic.
See a production of this if you can.
It's a slightly modernized (it certainly feels that way somehow, even though there's still a 'chorus' and none of the names or settings have changed) retelling of an old Ovid play/myth, but with a more feminist perspective. In the original myth, Philomele is turned into a Nightengale, and Wertenbaker uses this to explore how her literal speechlessness echoes the "speechlessness" that must occur when you move away from your family to a country where you know no one and do not speak the language. It really works. I'm not entirely sure if that was the intended interpretation of the original story of Philomele or if it's something new to Wertenbaker's adaptation, but it's fantastic.
See a production of this if you can.
April 25, 2017
I can best describe the main themes of Wertenbaker's play with the famous lines from Hamlet: "to be or not to be. That is the question." Yet, if these lines existed in the context of this play, the essential information would not be existentialism, but the power of questions, and those who wish to silence them.
The Love of the Nightingale is a play that illustrates the central themes of silence and questions, set on the backdrop of war, power, and the differences between the sexes. I really enjoyed this quick (albeit sad) read, notably because of both the male and female chorus members, who transcend simple dialogue and explain clearly and elegantly what Timberlake Wertenbaker attempted to convey.
To put it quite simply, from my own understanding, to ask questions is dangerous, but it is an inherent responsibility to any human being, despite the fear of being silenced. Only when we ask ourselves what the difference is between right and wrong, how we know that, as well as how we can learn from our pasts (the cycle of retribution playing a huge part I this piece), can we inevitably triumph over those who, like Tereus, not only believe themselves to be a god (and so capable of commanding us and conquering our spirit) but also believe it their right to stop us from speaking.
The Love of the Nightingale is a play that illustrates the central themes of silence and questions, set on the backdrop of war, power, and the differences between the sexes. I really enjoyed this quick (albeit sad) read, notably because of both the male and female chorus members, who transcend simple dialogue and explain clearly and elegantly what Timberlake Wertenbaker attempted to convey.
To put it quite simply, from my own understanding, to ask questions is dangerous, but it is an inherent responsibility to any human being, despite the fear of being silenced. Only when we ask ourselves what the difference is between right and wrong, how we know that, as well as how we can learn from our pasts (the cycle of retribution playing a huge part I this piece), can we inevitably triumph over those who, like Tereus, not only believe themselves to be a god (and so capable of commanding us and conquering our spirit) but also believe it their right to stop us from speaking.
March 8, 2015
tw: rape, infanticide, mutilation
A feminist retelling of the Ovidian myth of Procne, Philomela, and Tereus. Wertenbaker did a wonderful job with developing the themes of silence, truth, love, and justice. Surprisingly, she even managed to portray Tereus initially as a good, misguided man. Of course, by the end you will hate him, as is proper : ) And I found myself relating heavily to Procne and Philomela (of course, that could just be me personally); their sisterly dynamic reminded me very much of my own sister and me, so of course, I hated Tereus all the more for what he did to Philomela. And more importantly, this is a Greek myth that sorely needed a modern retelling. Ovid's version is beautiful (everything he touches is beautiful), but it relied too heavily on the sexualization of violence and sensationalism. This play was a hard read, but I loved it so much!
A feminist retelling of the Ovidian myth of Procne, Philomela, and Tereus. Wertenbaker did a wonderful job with developing the themes of silence, truth, love, and justice. Surprisingly, she even managed to portray Tereus initially as a good, misguided man. Of course, by the end you will hate him, as is proper : ) And I found myself relating heavily to Procne and Philomela (of course, that could just be me personally); their sisterly dynamic reminded me very much of my own sister and me, so of course, I hated Tereus all the more for what he did to Philomela. And more importantly, this is a Greek myth that sorely needed a modern retelling. Ovid's version is beautiful (everything he touches is beautiful), but it relied too heavily on the sexualization of violence and sensationalism. This play was a hard read, but I loved it so much!
July 6, 2021
The Love of the Nightingale was the first piece I worked on as part of my college theatre degree and it set the bar hopelessly high. Nightingale examines a minor character in Greek mythology (namely, Ovid's Metamorphoses) and places her as the protagonist in the tale of her own rape by her brother-in-law.
The play is excellent with plenty of poignant and insightful dialogue on rape culture and the treatment of victims throughout history told in beautiful verse. However despite its existence in the original myth and the number of times the symbolism has been explain to me, I still hate the last page (?) of this play.
The play is excellent with plenty of poignant and insightful dialogue on rape culture and the treatment of victims throughout history told in beautiful verse. However despite its existence in the original myth and the number of times the symbolism has been explain to me, I still hate the last page (?) of this play.
July 12, 2021
So many juicy themes! The use of language in a play about silence, the unseen victim, and ignored violent acts. Questioning authority... Where does silence begin?
I have a lot of notes and many thoughts, as well as my fair share of questions.
I have a lot of notes and many thoughts, as well as my fair share of questions.
August 9, 2016
Plays centred on Greek mythology will never cease to interest me. Also the aspect of meta-theatre within the play is so interesting and reminiscent of inception somewhat. 4/5 stars - an engrossing read.
April 17, 2007
An innovative twist on a Greek tragic legend. It's worth reading because it's quite short, even though it is predictable and obvious.
April 6, 2020
men are trash
March 25, 2026
(comparative literature)
October 30, 2022
Reread for uni
May 20, 2023
özetle diyo ki erk*kler kapatılsın
April 7, 2015
Would like to see this on stage.
April 15, 2017
Great take on a legend. I'd be concerned if I have to stage and or produce this play, but the read is a strong contender.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews