SNF Nostos

STAVROS NIARCHOS FOUNDATION

Arts

Theater of War Productions’ The Oedipus Project

Live

June 24, 2020 , 20:00 - 21:45, SNFCC

Theater of War Productions’ The Oedipus Project

Closed Captioning in Greek is available for all attendees for the entire duration of the event, please click the CC button at the bottom of your screen to see the captions. Caption size is adjustable using the arrow on the CC button.

Greek Closed Captioning is available through the livestream of this event, as well as simultaneous Audio translation during the discussion. Only attendees of the zoom event will be able to participate in the discussion, the livestream is a watch only experience.

A dramatic reading of Sophocles’ Oedipus the King as a catalyst for powerful, guided conversations about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Oedipus Project is an innovative digital initiative by Theater of War Productions that presents acclaimed actors performing scenes from Sophocles’ Oedipus the King as a catalyst for powerful, healing online conversations about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic upon diverse communities throughout the world. Sophocles’ ancient play, written and performed in 429 BC during the time of a plague that killed one-third of the Athenian population, is a timeless story of arrogant leadership, ignored prophecy, and a pestilence that ravages the city of Thebes. At the time the play was first performed, the audience would have been reeling in the wake of a pestilence and its economic, political, and social aftermath. Seen through this lens Oedipus the King appears to have been a powerful public health tool for helping Athenians communalize the trauma of the plague, through a story that is as relevant now as it was in its own time.

Featuring performances by Frances McDormand, Oscar Isaac, Jeffrey Wright, John Turturro, Frankie Faison, David Strathairn, Glenn Davis, Marjolaine Goldsmith and Public Advocate Jumaane Williams.

Translated, Directed and Facilitated by Bryan Doerries

A participatory audience discussion, framed by community panelists remarks, guided by Bryan Doerries will follow the readings from Oedipus the King.

Co-presented by the Summer Nostos Festival by Stavros Niarchos Foundation, Theater of War Productions, The Brooklyn Public Library, New York City Office of The Public Advocate, and the Weissman Family Foundation.

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Theater of War Productions works with leading film, theater, and television actors, such as Adam Driver, Paul Giamatti, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Alfred Molina, to present dramatic readings of seminal plays, followed by town hall-style discussions designed to confront social issues by drawing out raw and personal reactions to themes highlighted in the plays.

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) has supported Theater of War Productions since its establishment in 2009. SNF and Theater of War Productions are proud to celebrate their longstanding partnership with this special performance of The Oedipus Project for a large, international audience through the Summer Nostos Festival.

Because live, spontaneous reactions and discussion are integral to the nature of the event, The Oedipus Project by Theater of War Productions is not available to stream.