The following image shows the Oracle consulting with a group of people.  The image makes him appear angelic and the people in the group all seem to be in rapture of him. The image reminds me Jesus and the apostles and I wonder if Sophocles wanted the oracle to have God like powers instead of just the power of divinity. Although Oracles appears in many plays and books they are not usually shown to be as celestial as Teiresias with the outstretched arms and majestic stance.  Not even the Greek God/Goddesses of the times were drawn with such a sincere following.

Huinee, . "Teiresias (Tiresias) ." Edu 3217. BlogSpot, 2009. Web. 31 Oct 2010. <http://huinee1787.blogspot.com/2009/02/teiresias-tiresias.html>.

Oedipus the King has been adapted over the years to become updated plays and periodic movies. In 1927 an exiled Russian named Strabansky composed an opera in a dead Latin language that used masks and dramatic lighting to produce a grim portrayal of the original play. This added a different, yet more dramatic, twist to the play and made the play even darker. The Opera version was very emotional, as emotional as only opera can make things, and seem to express the true tragedy behind the play. 

HENAHAN, Donal. "Review/Music; Stravinsky's 'Oedipus Rex,' Without Attic Trappings." New York Times (1990): n. pag. Web. 31 Oct 2010. <http://www.nytimes.com/1990/01/20/arts/review-music-stravinsky-s-oedipus-rex-without-attic-trappings.html>.

There are many comparisons of Sophocles and Shakespeare done over the years. One compares the reaction of both leads in Oedipus the King and Macbeth with regards to the words of the Oracles. Oedipus fights his fate only to fall directly into it while conversely Macbeth heads full tilt toward his destiny.  The reactions show the duality of human nature and make you wonder if the reactions would be as opposite today.  If I was told that I would be hit by a hot pink motorcycle on I5 would I avoid the I5 at all costs or take my chances?  Or in this cynical time would I blow off an Oracle as being simply crazy and know that if I was hit by a hot pink motorcycle on I5 it was simply a coincidence.

Nuttall, A. D. "Oracles and the Start of Recognition." Raritan 24.3 (2005): 18-28. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 31 Oct. 2010.

Theater is known for its Greek tragedies yet many of those written early on did not survive to present day. Sophocles is thought to have written more than 120 plays yet only 7 survive, with Oedipus the King being considered one of the most perfect Greek tragedies. Who really can argue this point? Poor Oedipus is left for dead only to live, kill his father, marry his mother, have children with her, and then finds out that she was, in fact, his mother. Who could have more of a cursed life? Even later Shakespearian tragedies could not compete with the twists written down by Sophocles.

Brockett, Oscar, and Franklin Hildy. History of the theatre. 10th. Boston , Ma: Allyn & Bacon, 2008. 14-16. Print.

The following video, made in 1967, appears to be a faithful adaptation of the original play. The main actors did an excellent job of conveying the guilt and agony that Oedipus felt upon realizing what he had done.  With that being said, the move seemed pretty “standard” and lacked the fundamental hook that would get movie goes to actually see the film. The extras in the background seem to stand there with no emotion, and during Oedipus’ speech not even the children showed emotion. I would think that at this pivotal moment emotions should be shown rampantly and the children should, at least, be crying.

Here is the Youtube video. I couldnt not get it to post.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZ8N5ZYqi9A&feature=related

You have to wonder what Sophocles was thinking when he wrote Oedipus the King, and if he comprehended the far reaching impact his play would have. Many people having read, or seen the play probably just thought, “Yeah, okay – weirdo” but who would have thought that his play would later be a term used in psychology.” Oedipus complex is a collection of unconscious wishes involving sexual desire for a parent of the opposite sex and jealous rivalry of the parent of the same sex.” It is truly amazing that a play written that long ago would still have implication in society today and even be used as a comparative for mental health conditions.

"Oedipus complex"  World Encyclopedia. Philip's, 2008. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press.  Central Washington University.  1 November 2010  <http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t142.e8369>

I have thought long and hard on how the props should play into certain scenes of the play. “Thebes is located 801km north of Athens, in the fertile Boeotian Plain,” but how do we make our stage reflects the position of the city and show the richness of the era. I, laughingly, thought we could post road signs that said, “This way Athens” but this would be ludicrous in a theatrical production and it is not as if the style of dress differed from city to city. I must admit it is a conundrum and the only solution I can come up with is that the prop do not, necessarily, reflect the actual city, instead the actors must imbue the observer with the knowledge of the city by sheer force of presence and by the excellence of the script.

Vika, E., V. Aravantinos, and M. P. Richards. "Aristophanes and stable isotopes: a taste for freshwater fish in Classical Thebes (Greece)?." Antiquity 83.322 (2009): 1076-1083. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 1 Nov. 2010.

Gentlemen please be patient and listen the epiphany I have just had. Imagine this scene, people are dead or dying all around our “hero” and he is desperate for this epidemic to end. The light shines down directly on Oedipus and his queen, while slightly in shadow you see the bodies of the dead and dying. The queen has a look of utter dejection upon her face, and the sorrow radiates from Oedipus. The audience can feel the anguish of the couple. Drop curtain: scene end.  

Nater, Adrienne. "Death, Dying, Grief, and Mourning." N.p., 2008. Web. 31 Oct 2010. <http://www.deathdyinggriefandmourning.com/Death-Dying-Grief-Mourning/8-Sophocles,%20Oedipus%20The%20King%20Thebes-Death%20of%20Jocasta.htm>.

Greece is a country of mystery, where many archaeology sites are found. But was Greece always simply “Greece” or was there much more to the country? I mean we have the Greek Gods, Greek Mythology, Greek architecture that is still copied today, Greek food, and let us not forget the fall of Greece.  “In 430 BC, while Athens was under siege by Sparta, a highly contagious epidemic swept the land.” This plague is epitomized in the play Oedipus the King though the reason for its manifestation is not quite the scientific reason we would give today. While many believe that a vengeful God will bring blight to humanity there are not many who would go to an Oracle to find out what ticked off the God / Gods so much that everyone had to pay. Nor do I think that finding the murderer of one person would ease the suffering of many.

Littman, Robert J. "The Plague of Athens: Epidemiology and Paleopathology." Mount Sinai Journal of Medicine 76.5 (2009): 456-467. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 31 Oct. 2010.

Come ye come ye, both royalty and commoner, see the most spectacular event of the season.   This play brings the forth the hardship of the times and what one must transverse to survive. This story will set you on edge and astound you with its many fallacies. The actors will woe you with the heartfelt love and gruesome ending. But remember it is the actor’s job to show you all. “The actor is a mouthpiece: that is his sole responsibility; the poet has seen to the rest, ages since. “(Nagler 15) So onward fellow citizens – enjoy the show.

Ngaler, A.M. A Source Book in Theatrical History. Mineola, N.Y: Dover Publications, 1952. 15. Print.

A Source Book in Theatrical History, A.M NGLER

The Works of Lucian of Samosata, trans. H.W.Fowler and F.G Fowler (Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1905), II, 247-248