Book, Music and Lyrics by Jay Turvey & Paul Sportelli
Present day Delphi, Indiana
Leigh, a 40-something who works in a hardware store, has lived in Delphi, Indiana all her life. She is dissatisfied with her life but doesn't quite know
how to change it. She's got a 20-something boyfriend Jim, who is a baker, but it's not enough. While wrestling with her discontent, she is visited by Pythia, the Oracle of Delphi from ancient Greece, who magically arrives on Leigh's fireplace mantle one night. Pythia (aka Phoebe) has been banished by the Greek god, Apollo, for becoming pregnant, a taboo for the Oracle. As punishment, Pythia must wait out her pregnancy in Delphi, Indiana until the next full moon before returning to Greece, where she will be forced to sacrifice her baby. The Oracle's mystical presence stirs up latent feelings in both Leigh and her boyfriend. Jim encourages Leigh's love of writing as a way to fulfill her purpose and Leigh struggles with the idea that some people are gifted, and some are not. In the end, the next full moon and the fate of the Oracle determine the future for all.
Performed by Patty Jamieson and Julie Martell at the Shaw Festival's Coffee Concert Series on June 6, 2010.
Featuring Paul Sportelli (piano), Emma Banfield (violin), Alex Grant (cello),
Anna Redekop (viola) and Kathryn Sugden (violin).
The inspiration for this musical comes from a recent trip to Greece. While visiting the ruins of ancient Delphi, the mystical power of the place was overwhelming. The contrast of our very modern selves with this ancient site remained with us and became the springboard for our story of a contemporary world disrupted by an older one.