Amphion is a classic tragicomedy: the heart of a working-class musician desires above her station, and is inspired to take a more active role in her destiny. Amphion must choose whether or not to sacrifice her comfortable life in the court in pursuit of artistic freedom and creative expression – a choice with which many artists are familiar.

During the rewrite of the original 2011 script, we made a decision to change the lead character’s gender from male to female. Through this change, we found more honesty in Amphion’s triumphs, and ultimately felt more loss by her death. While acknowledging the risks of how violence against a woman would read, we decided that this change strengthened the story, deepened the tragedy, and made the commentary more relevant.

In light of the heartbreaking loss the LGBTQ community has experienced in Orlando, BROS recognizes how the shocking elements of Amphion could be upsetting at this difficult moment in time. While our play takes place over 1,500 years ago, we acknowledge that the world is still full of hatred and fear of those with a different song to sing. As a theater company that strives for inclusivity, we wish only to say that we will always be in support of those with their own beautiful and unique voices.