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A new translation of an ancient hero's tragedy and a contemporary dark comedy about family and faith are soon set to open on Utah stages.

'Herakles' • Utah theatergoers will have a rare opportunity to see a production of Euripides' "Herakles," says Jim Svendsen, founder of the Classical Greek Theater Festival of Utah, in its 46th year.

Director Hugh Hanson has chosen to set the war story in 1969, with Herakles as a Vietnam veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder after experiencing the hell of combat and the hell of survival. "We've turned this into a rock musical," Hanson says, as all Greek tragedies were originally musicals. The Utah production features original music performed by composer Ryan Fedor.

Working with Carson's new translation is magical, the composer told Svendsen, "to have an ancient Greek tragedy in modern American English."

Physically, Herakles (played by University of Utah-trained actor Joel Huff) "is a statue waiting to be cast," but he is haunted with blood guilt over what he has done and seen, Hanson says.

Euripides reinvented the Greek hero's story for Athenian audiences, most of whom were military veterans, after two generations of Middle Eastern wars. He tells the story that Herakles comes home crazy from his labors — in modern terms, with PTSD — which causes him to do the unthinkable.

Contemporary wars make the ancient Greek story unfold with new resonance. "It's a play for our time," says Svendsen, the founder of the festival, who offers orientations 30 minutes before each performance. "This is the human Herakles, a man of contradictions. I see Herakles as part god, part human, and so flawed."

The script has a "broken back," considered a problem play because of the horrific events in the middle that might serve as the conclusion of most tragedies. Instead, Euripides launches new stories about the gods' divine vengeance and how Herakles gains redemption through his friendship with Theseus.

The Utah production will feature a prologue, where Herakles will be seen in Hades rescuing Theseus in a battle with the three-headed dog, Cerberus, portrayed by 12-foot-tall traditional Japanese bunraku puppets, designed by puppeteer Glenn Brown.

"You will actually see the horrific fight between the superhero Herakles and the three-headed monster Cerberus," says Svendsen in a list of top 10 reasons to see the play. "We all love tales about Herakles, the greatest and most beloved hero of the ancient Greeks. We all love stage villains, especially powerful, brutal and confident tyrants brought to justice and overturned."

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'A Bright New Boise' • "I think we make decisions about who we are in very small ways, and this play amplifies them into big decisions," says Brian Pilling, who plays Will in Wasatch Theatre Company's regional premiere of Samuel D. Hunter's "A Bright New Boise."

"Boise," a dark comedy about faith and family with a double-reveal embedded in the script, is set in the break room of an Idaho Hobby Lobby store, where "customers are paying money to do the manufacturing process themselves," a character says.

The story of the store's eccentric, lonely employees revolves around Will, an evangelical Christian, who is hiding a dark secret that drove him to leave his hometown church. He hires on at Hobby Lobby aiming to bond with his biological son before the Rapture. Among the characters is the manager, Pauline (Sallie Cooper), who is proud of the way she's been able to create order out of the store's chaos.

Jim Martin is directing the show, which will kick off the community theater company's 19th season. "The writing is really good," Pilling says of Hunter's script, which explores the characters' complicated relationships with family and religion. "Hunter has a gift for revealing the delusions that sustain people, and although his eye may be critical, it is also deeply affectionate," Margaret Gray wrote in a mixed 2015 Los Angeles Times review.

The cast has worked to explore the story's universal themes, which producers believe should have resonance for Utah audiences. "We've talked about how easy it is, when you have put yourself in a bubble or safe community, to not question your beliefs," Pilling says.

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Classical Greek Theatre Festival's 'Herakles'

When • Friday and Saturday, Sept. 2-3 and Sept. 9-10

Where • Westminister College's Courage Theatre, 1840 S. 1300 East, Westminster College campus Salt Lake City

Tickets • $15 ($7 students); free for Westminster staff and faculty; available at the door

Also

West Valley City • Friday, Sept. 16, 7:30 p.m.; Utah Cultural Celebration Center, 1355 W. 3100 South, West Valley City; call 801-965-5100 for ticket information.

Provo • Monday, Sept. 19, 5 p.m.; De Jong Concert Hall, Brigham Young University campus, Provo; $11 at 801-422-2981 or at the door

Ogden • Tuesday, Sept. 20, 7:30 p.m.; Wildcat Theater, Weber State University campus, Ogden; call 801-626-8500 for ticket information

Salt Lake City • Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 24-25, 9 a.m.; Red Butte Garden Amphitheatre, 300 Wakara Way, Salt Lake City; $15 at 801-585-0556 or at the door

Wasatch Theatre's 'A Bright New Boise'

When • Thursday, Sept. 1-Saturday, Sept. 17; Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 8 p.m.; with 2 p.m. matinees on Sept. 10 and 17

Where • Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center's Studio Theater, 138 W. 300 South, Salt Lake City

Tickets • $20, at 801-355-2787 or arttix.org