Alexander the Great has fascinated historians and storytellers throughout the ages. Alongside our major exhibition Alexander the Great: The Making of a Myth, the British Library is hosting a variety of Alexander-related events, including talks and performances by authors and artists. Details of some of these events are highlighted below.

Alexander driving off elephants with pigs and musical instruments: Royal MS 20 B XX, f. 57r

The Unbuilt Room: Alexander the Great is part-performance, part-game, an interactive journey where people create stories, and stories create people. This new edition of Seth Kriebel’s acclaimed ‘exploration game’ has been written especially to accompany the exhibition, Alexander the Great: The Making of a Myth. Inspired by choose-your-own-adventure stories and early text-adventure computer games, The Unbuilt Room: Alexander the Great combines the inventiveness of contemporary gaming with the simplicity of bare-bones storytelling. There are four performances in total: the first performance is on Wednesday 18 January (19.00-20.00); the second performance is on Wednesday 25 January; the third performance is on Wednesday 1 February; the fourth and final performance is on Wednesday 15 February 2023.

On Friday 27 January (19.30-20.30) the British Library is hosting Alexander: Between Fantasy and History with Robin Lane Fox. This lecture is being given by renowned historian and author Robin Lane Fox, biographer of Alexander the Great. He was the historical advisor for Oliver Stone's epic film Alexander, and took part in many of its most dramatic re-enactments.

Alexander the Great: Between Dreams and Imagination is a journey through words, live music and images into the world of Alexander the Great, through the dreams of the philosopher Aristotle. Alexander the Great: Between Dreams and Imagination is inspired by a modern epic poem by Stamatis Filippoulis. Readings by a cast of leading actors are accompanied by original music by Stamatis Spanoudakis, one of the most prominent Greek composers of his generation, and by rich imagery directed by Paul Benney. There are three performances in total: the first performance is on Thursday 2 February (19.45-21.15); the second performance is on Friday 3 February (19.45-21.15); the third performance will take place on Saturday 4 February (19.45-21.15).

 

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