Phaedra's Love

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Phaedra's Love
Cover of the Methuen edition
Written by	Sarah Kane
Characters	Hippolytus Phaedra Strophe Theseus Doctor Priest Crowd
Date premiered	15 May 1996 (1996-05-15)
Place premiered	Gate Theatre, London
Original language	English
Subject	Violence, sexuality
Setting	The palace of Theseus

Phaedra's Love is a play by British playwright Sarah Kane. It was first performed in 1996 at London's Gate Theatre, directed by the author. The play is a modern adaptation of Seneca's Phaedra. The play explores the brutal nature of love, social relations, nihilism and belief through the example of an affair between a queen and her stepson.

It centres more on Hippolytus (the original focuses more on Phaedra), who is rendered lazy and cynical by his upbringing as the son of King Theseus. Unlike classical drama, most of the violent action happens on stage rather than off.

Kane described Phaedra's Love as "My comedy".