Sophocles: King Oedipus(programme from the performance)
Pitínský's Pig-headed Oedipus Looks for the Roots, Even in Folklore (Slovo)

Photos from the performance




The Archa Theatre and HaDivadlo, Brno present

Sophocles: King Oedipus

A Tragedy, Prague version

Previous translation MATYÁŠ HAVRDA
Translator PETR BORKOVEC
Director JAN ANTONÍN PITÍNSKÝ
Music LUBOŠ MALINOVKSÝ
Set Designer JANA BAČOVÁ-KROFTOVÁ
Costume designer JANA PREKOVÁ
Dramaturg LUCIE BULISOVÁ
Choreographer MARTA LAJNEROVÁ

The Cast
Oedipus, King of Thebes Ján Sedal
Jocasta, Wife of Oedipus Mariana Chmelařová or Marie Ludvíková
Creon, Brother of Jocasta Cyril Drozda
Priest and Messenger of Oedipus Miloš Maršálek
Corinthian Messenger Josef Polášek
Shepherd Marek Daniel

Theban Chorus Marta Bačíková, Marek Daniel, Miroslav Kumhala, Pavel Liška, Tomáš Matonoha, Josef Polášek, Anna Veselá, Luboš Veselý, Iva Volánková

The songs about the "Rock of Delphi" were arranged by Jan Sedlař, jr. The Men´s Association of Extreme Follore, KRASA, also performs.

Special thanks to:
Vladimíra Čermáková for her assistance,
also to the Bočeks from the Castle in Milotice, and Peter Scherhauf.

The Premiere of the Brno production took place in the Kabinet of Muses , HaDivadlo on November 7, 1998.
Prague premiere, February 15, 1999 at the Archa Theatre


It is almost twenty years since Antigone appeared in the Prague pub, "Na Ořechovce". Judith Malina entered the stage through a squeaky door, and was followed by Julian Beck as Creon. After him, the other members of the Living Theatre gradually followed. During this secret performance, they introduced a ritual story about the courage to abide by the rules of a higher rank, instead of the commands and prohibitions of those in power. It was a story about the revolt of an individual, as well as a story about loneliness where heroism leads in a society of cowards. The influence of the drama from antiquity was multiplied by the conspiring spirit of the entire event.
          I dare to insist that the story of Oedipus is similar even today. The irreversible fate and horrible self-knowledge is a tragic theme of these current times. When HaDivadlo from Brno began its preparations of a new staging of Sophocles´ King Oedipus directed by J.A. Pitínský, we agreed that this production will have two versions; in Brno, where it will use the technical and spatial conditions of the Cabinet of Muses (Kabinet múz), and the Prague version will take advantage of the possibilities of the Archa Theatre. The goal was not to create two different productions, but to give the story the maximal features of the space in which it is performed.
          The stage in Na Ořechovce was defined by scotch tape and was enough for Malina and Beck. They used neither theatrical lights, nor costumes. The conditions of Pitínský´s Oedipus are much more demanding and they are moving farther away from the ideals of the "poor theatre" of the sixties. I believe that there is one thing that remains common: the intensity and actuality of the message.
          Well, Antigone was the daughter of Oedipus. Nonetheless, in spite of the fact that she knew about the sins that he committed, she took care of him until his death.

Ondřej Hrab, Archa Theatre

Why Sophocles, why Oedipus?
Firstly, can this question at all sound uncertain? Well, the entire heritage of the Greek classics are apparent in the present European mentality, if only for the reason that it belongs to the most important sources; still today, it presents for many of us, some kind of a model. Rather, on the contrary, it is truly apparent. We all assume we know what Greece is. Beautiful Greece of rhythmical illumination, extraordinary and brilliant in all of human history (...) This picture of Antiquity was created during the renaissance and Classicism, and was brought into our century... But how does this idea correspond with that everyday life of the man, did he ever clean his nails, or did he use his hair to blow his nose, or did he die of tuberculosis, fever or the plague? It's not only about the common days of the Greeks: also the highest aim of human life seemed to be problematic during Sophocles' time, as the fifth Century before the Christ was an era of great crises. Crises, because the world was being divided, as well as man's place within it.
          All previous centuries are the epochs of certainty, an intelligent and non-problematic world. It may sound to us as a paradox, but the world of those barbarians, primitives, is possible to be characterised by that world's fears and uncertainties - but at that time the understanding of the world was very basic. From this, the security and sense of "home" arises...
          The Sixth, and especially the Fifth, century before Christ, we can see a break where the spiritual history of Europe has characterised it as the origin of philosophy. This change, which brings on the crises, occurs due to the questions being posed. We begin to ask: "What is the world?", "Who am I?", "What is this?", … From the beginning, it is not the answer that is important, but the fact that the question is asked. The world and my place in it begins to be problematic. All European civilisation begins with a question!! Finally, it was only Socrates and Plato who gave the first complete answers. (…)
          And so, at this time, we become homeless. In this sense, our situation is the same: Oedipus is protesting because he is asking.

Janoš Krist, HaDivadlo (reduced)





Pitínský's Pig-headed Oedipus Looks for the Roots, Even in Folklore

The unusually imaginative performance of the famous Sophoclean tragedy, King Oedipus, created by J. A. Pitínský and the ensemble of Brno's HaDivadlo, can be seen in the Archa Theatre. For this particular space, subtle changes were made including live music on the stage. The new translations of Petr Borkovec and Matyáš Havrda works naturally - many interjections add to it a strong feeling of concern.
          King Oedipus is not only the story of a man who wanted to escape his bad fate, of a man who protected the Thebes against the Sphinx, who became the loving king and decided to rid the city of an unknown stain, who turns out to be Oedipus himself, because nothing indicates that he killed his own father, Laia, and married his own mother, Jocasta. It is a story - a never-ending question, not merely about blame and innocence. (…)
          The opening scene is a magical ritual over the two protagonists. Their faces - Oedipus uses blue make-up and Jocasta red - do not merely project symbolism of the colours: they are deprived of their own individuality, they are being made subordinate to the whole. The makeup on Oedipus (Ján Sedal) washes away, not only physically, but primarily due to the doggedly attempts of questioning. By this, in the pain of a new-born man, who is willing to accept responsibility for his own actions.(...)
          Marie Ludvíková as Jocasta (with alternative, Mariana Chmelařová) also greatly presents a supple, suspecting and, also in noble silence, a suffering woman. The main character is, as it is always with HaDivadlo, the entire ensemble. The ritual dance, movements of the old Théban men, wild and rhythmic, calling out interjections, with good music, finds inspiration in everything that we felt as being ancient. Also the costumes and set design were adapted by ancient elements, with suggestions of antique Egypt, an amalgam of Greek and Barbarian ideas, and also Moravian folklore. The part of civilian costumes remind us, that we are in the theatre and that it is also a performance about our present day.

Slovo, 3. 3. 1999, Eva Jeníková