The Bakkhai

A contemporary translation of the Greek classic.

“[Bagg’s translation] would be a good choice to use where one wants to rouse an initial enthusiasm for Greek tragedy. It has immediacy and excitement. By the same token it ought to be the best acting version. Robert Bagg has given us a contemporary, dramatic rendition of the Bacchae.”—Classical Outlook“Without often straying beyond the strictest sense of the Greek, Bagg has successfully translated one work of art into another, rendering living Greek into living English. The clarity of his poetry confronts the audience directly with the horror and stunning beauty of the Dionysiac forces, and thus I believe the version would lend itself well to production.”—Carleton Miscellany“This interpretation and version of the play are excellent, very much alive and full of insight.”—Robert Fitzgerald

Poet and translator Robert Bagg is professor of English at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. His translations of The Bakkhai, Hippolytos, and Oedipus the King (University of Massachusetts Press, 1982) are often performed.