Back in early May, Oscar Isaac, Jeffrey Wright, Frances McDormand, John Turturro, David Stratharin, Frankie Faison, and Public Advocate Jumaane Williams teamed up for The Oedipus Project, an innovative new digital initiative by Theater of War Productions. Theater of War is a company that presents “community-specific, theater-based projects that address pressing public health and social issues.”
For the Project, the above cast participated in a live performance of scenes from Sophocles’ ancient play Oedipus the King, which was originally written and performed in 429 BC at the same time that a plague took the lives of one-third of the Athenian population. The purpose of this performance, which was translated, directed, and faciliated by Bryan Doerries, was to lead to “powerful, healing online conversations about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic upon diverse communities throughout the United States.”
For those that missed out on the first event, you’re in luck. The same cast will be teaming up again for another new, live performance of The Oedipus Project for the Summer Nostos Festival, an international, multidimensional event full of art, music, performances, entertainment, and more. This event usually takes place at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center in Athens, however due to COVID-19, this year’s RetroFuture Edition will take place between June 21-28 in a digital format.
The Oedipus Project reading will take place on Wednesday, June 24 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. EST. The event will take place via Zoom, and tickets are free of charge. Registration is now open, and attendees can expect to receive the Zoom link two days prior to the event, on June 22.
You can check out the rest of the scheduled programming for the Summer Nostos Festival here.
