Pop quiz: who is the Greek God of the Sun? No, not Apollo, god of light, music and archery. Helios was the Greek God of the Sun, famous for riding his chariot across the sky every day.
Less famous is his mortal son, Phaeton, depicted in a Rubens painting showing Phaeton falling to the ground after riding his father’s chariot dangerously across the sky, causing harm to the earth and the cosmos. For his recklessness, Zeus kills Phaeton with thunderbolts.
The Fall of Phaeton Painting by Peter Paul Rubens
It sounds like Phaeton was the ultimate hoon, who paid the ultimate price but perhaps that’s harsh. Perhaps it’s hard being the mortal son of two Gods: father Helios and mother Clymene, a nature deity.
The myth of Phaethon suggests his downfall is driven by his arrogant need to prove his divine parentage and his overconfidence in his ability to handle a divine task like riding a chariot across the sky. The moral of the story is to avoid hubris (too much pride), practice moderation and respect your own limitations.
Wright & Grainger, a UK based theatre company specialising in modern interpretations of Greek myths, have a different take. In their one man show, Helios, Melbourne performer Jamie Macdowell tells the story with a twist: so Phaeton is a modern teenage boy with a pilot father he reveres but rarely sees. The ‘chariot’ Phaeton rides is his father’s gold painted Mercury.
In an intimate hour of theatre in the round, there is a different moral to Phaeton’s story which might be expressed in modern day language as ‘Go hard!’
The show involves charismatic performer MacDowell reading the story as he circles inside the ring of audience seats, pausing often to invite an audience member to help read the story. This audience participation device worked well to diversify the voices in the story and added an element of fun for those of us who chose to accept the challenge.
The story depicts modern Phaeton as stuck in a humdrum existence in the country, missing his father, being bullied at school and yearning to get closer to the sun. When he reaches adolescence, he starts taking big risks.
‘The show is an allegory about being stuck and getting out’ says MacDowell. ‘The myth is saying “don’t floor” it but we are asking “why not floor it”?
Whether or not you are into Greek mythology, Helios is a modern fable about risk, the pride and recklessness of young boys and how we define our worlds: all relevant themes in 2026.
The moody, intimate setting, lit by a few large light globes and a modern soundtrack worked well with the Maleny audience who looked engaged and animated with a show that really is just a man reading a story but the story is so good, we hung on every word.
A simple set. IMAGE supplied
No bells and whistles, no dramatics, just good storytelling that leaves you thinking deeply about ‘daring greatly’.
Helios is on tour in Australia and next plays the Canberra Theatre Centre 19 – 23 May and the Brunswick Ballroom for one night only in a double bill with Selene 27 May.
This reviewer saw Helios at Maleny Community Centre as part of the Horizon Festival: an annual arts and cultural festival in May exploring the intersections of art, people and place on Kabi Kabi and Jinibara Country, Sunshine Coast.
IMAG of Jamie Macdowell at top of story: supplied
