OEDIPUS and TIRESIAS


 The following esoteric verses are an extract from OEDIPUS TYRANOS, a new Metamorphic Ritual Theatre Production written by Orryelle Defenestrate-Bascule, premiering in London Sept.'08


OEDIPUS TYRANOS is a dynamic and contemporary re-working of the classic tragedy from Ancient Greek theatre. Whereas Sophocles’ well-known original play of the myth (‘Oedipus Rex’) is irrevocably fatalistic, this new version demonstrates that Fate and Free Will are not mutually exclusive.

Rather than change actual events in the original story, it allows the characters to perceive and thus react differently to these challenging circumstances, with startlingly different results. The power of listening to the subconscious and deep mind is explored, as Oedipus’ progress is reflected in different deifications of Fate - the enigmatic SphinX, Hecate/Moerae at the Crossroads, and the Pythoness or Delphic Oracle.







EXTRACT from SCENE FOUR: THEBES:


(Enter Tiresias, the blind seer, with staff)

Oedipus:

Ah, Tiresias, blind Seer,
You have come at last!
No doubt you know of the terrible plague which cripples Thebes
For which I as its regent feel it my duty to address
We must eradicate this foul sickness from my land-
Ancient one what, in your wisdom, would you suggest?





Tiresias:

Ah, stop, Oedipus Rex, pause…
So intent are you on finding a cure,
That you look not to the cause…


Oedipus:

Tiresias, though your advice I sought and your wisdom I cherish
It is too late to concern ourselves with the Cause,
For a Cure must be found ere we perish!


Tiresias:

Think you then that these two are not related,
And only by Time’s scythe separated?
I may be blind but I can
See far more than thee, Oedipus
For I was once a man

Then after striking two coupling serpents, entwined
With my staff
I became a woman,  For seven years
Until, seeing serpents entwined once again
With my staff, I struck them again
And returned to this form

So it was I who was consulted
By Hera and Zeus when they quibbled
Over who has the most pleasure in love
-man or woman?
Though I answered truly from my own experience
-I of all people might know!–
Zeus struck me blind for my insult by in-sight!
The truth hurts indeed, it seems –what a blow!
And a jealous god confers his pain to others

Yet Hera blessed me with the gift of prophecy, the Vision of the Goddess
And so I Know still, I see still, I feel still
The serpents twined within
How they writhe and polarize
Betwixt the bones, beneath the skin


And so I see too, their reflection in you
Where the male snake is strong and resplendent
But the feminine serpent faint, untended
No balance, a staff of will,
With no chalice
For it to fill and fulfil


Oedipus:

While I appreciate your insight
Regarding my spiritual balance, Tiresias
There are concerns more immediate
In this outer world of form: Dread!
Thebes is beset by a plague, and I know not why
–Nor thus how to avert its spread


Tiresias:

Ah Oedipus, but this is no separate matter
Or rather matter is not separate from spirit
You are the king of this city-state, Oedipus Rex
Perhaps your own state reflects and relates to this hex?

…And I will tell you also this, my regent proud
When the former King was killed, the plague was seeded
Even as you took your marriage vows.


Oedipus:

What!?
I will find this criminal, then
This killer of Laius
Avenge his death and thus will lift
This plague from my domain
We must find him then
–To me, men of mine, Plagued though ye be-
While still you can stand and take orders!

(Enter Chorus of soldiers)


Tiresias:

Ah the Questing man, searching ever -bold and staunch
Without, without, around and about, never any time
To stop and sit for a while on your haunches
and see what then you find by contemplating what’s... behind…


Oedipus:

But not a moment can be wasted!
The killer must be found before this plague destroys us!
Men ! Go out and find out as much as you can about the circumstances of Laius’ death

(Chorus of Oedipus’ soldiers exit)


Tiresias:

When you returned to Delphi
Did the Pythoness tell you nothing more
About your fate, and that of your precious city-state?


Oedipus:

Nothing new, only again that old wives’ tale
Of a horrid ordained future for me
That I shall never fulfil


Tiresias:

A… future?
 Then it seems you misssed the Pythonesss’s ssubtle sshift of tense this time
The tale of an old wife, indeed!
By the twinned tongues of twain serpents, Oedipus, know ye not your own blood?!

(Oedipus looks confused, like something is slowly dawning on him)


Chorus/Oedipus’ soldiers (returning):





Oedipus! Oedipus Tyranos! Oedipus! Oedipus Rex!

 Good tidings, We have discovered something, the puzzle unravels…
In information from an old shepherd who saw the struggle many years ago
If he is to be believed
It seems that Laius’ death was at the hands of a traveller,
Who took the life of the former King where met and crossed roads Three
The traveller threw him from his Chariot, and…
(Oedipus is swaying, pale, stunned)
 …What ails thee, Your Majesty?




 For tickets to OEDIPUS TYRANOS on the 27th of Sept. in London, see
http://www.theatreofophidia.co.uk

 OEDIPUS TYRANOS may also be performed in whole or in part at :http://www.esozone.com THE ESOZONE FESTIVALin Portland Oregon, USA Oct 10-12th '08.