''Orghast'' was an experimental play based on the myth of

Prometheus In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning "forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titan god of fire. Prometheus is best known for defying the gods by stealing fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, know ...

, written by

Peter Brook Peter Stephen Paul Brook (21 March 1925 – 2 July 2022) was an English theatre and film director. He worked first in England, from 1945 at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, from 1947 at the Royal Opera House, and from 1962 for the Royal Shak ...

and

Ted Hughes Edward James "Ted" Hughes (17 August 1930 – 28 October 1998) was an English poet, translator, and children's writer. Critics frequently rank him as one of the best poets of his generation and one of the twentieth century's greatest wri ...

, and performed in 1971 at the Festival of Arts of Shiraz-Persepolis, which was held annually from 1967 to 1977. It was performed in two parts, with the first performed at

Persepolis , native_name_lang = , alternate_name = , image = Gate of All Nations, Persepolis.jpg , image_size = , alt = , caption = Ruins of the Gate of All Nations, Persepolis. , map = , map_type ...

around dusk, and the second at the nearby site of

Naqsh-e Rostam Naqsh-e Rostam ( lit. mural of Rostam, fa, نقش رستم ) is an ancient archeological site and necropolis located about 12 km northwest of Persepolis, in Fars Province, Iran. A collection of ancient Iranian rock reliefs are cut into the ...

at dawn.

The Play

Orghast was the

International Centre for Theatre Research The International Centre for Theatre Research, sometimes also known as The International Centre for Theatre Creation, was founded in 1970 by Peter Brook and Micheline Rozan. It is often abbreviated to the acronym CIRT, as in French the group is call ...

's first public performance at an international event. Peter Brook and Ted Hughes collaborated to create a comprehensive myth, weaving in and out of the

myth Myth is a folklore genre consisting of Narrative, narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or Origin myth, origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not Objectivity (philosophy), ...

, to be performed at the

Shiraz Shiraz (; fa, شیراز, Širâz ) is the List of largest cities of Iran, fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars province, Fars Province, which has been historically known as Pars (Sasanian province), Pars () and Persis. As o ...

festival in Iran in 1971, which gave the group its first commission. It was written in part in an invented language that Hughes called Orghast, and this eventually also became the name of the piece. Classical Greek and

Avesta The Avesta () is the primary collection of religious texts of Zoroastrianism, composed in the Avestan language. The Avesta texts fall into several different categories, arranged either by dialect, or by usage. The principal text in the litu ...

were also used. (Avesta is a two-thousand-year-old ceremonial language, in which the letters of the words contain indications of how particular sounds are intended to be heard.) The piece was developed through improvisation with actors and experimentation, led by Brook and Hughes. Brook's and Hughes' purpose in using these languages was to communicate with the audience in pure sound, in a mode in which meaning is conveyed in such a way that is intended to transcend rational discourse. According to his own descriptions, Brook's goals are related to those of sacred and ritual theater. Believing "the essence of theater to be magic," ''Orghast'' was supposed to bring the audience to alternate modes of consciousness, either "beyond themselves or below themselves." *Directed by Peter Brook in collaboration with Arby Ovanesian (Iran), Geoffrey Reeves (England) and

Andrei Șerban Andrei Șerban (born June 21, 1943) is a Romanian- American theater director. A major name in twentieth-century theater, he is renowned for his innovative and iconoclastic interpretations and stagings. In 1992 he became Professor of Theater at th ...

(Romania); *Stage Set: Eugene Lee (US), Franne Lee (USA), and Jean Monod (Switzerland). The story of this production is documented in a book by A. C. H. Smith and a chapter by Glenn Meredith.

Actors

*Cameroon: Daniel Kamwa *England : Robert Lloyd, Pauline Munro, Bruce Myers,

Natasha Parry Natasha Parry (2 December 1930 – 22 July 2015) was an English actress of Russian descent. The daughter of film director Gordon Parry (film director), Gordon Parry, she was married to theatre director Peter Brook from 1951 until her death, and ...

Irene Worth Irene Worth, CBE (June 23, 1916March 10, 2002) was an American stage and screen actress who became one of the leading stars of the British and American theatre. She pronounced her given name with three syllables: "I-REE-nee". Worth made her Bro ...

*France: Claude Confortès, Sylvain Corthay *Iran: Nozar Azadi, Farkhundeh Baver, Dariush Farhang, Mohamed-Bagher Ghaffari, Hushang Ghovanlou, Said Oveyesi,

Parviz Poorhosseini Parviz Poorhosseini ( fa, پرویز پورحسینی, 11 September 1941 – 27 November 2020) was an Iranian film, theater and television actor. Biography He was best known for his roles in ''Bashu, the Little Stranger'' (1989), '' The Fifth Se ...

, Syavash Tahmoures, Saddredin Zahed *Japan: Katsuhiro Oida *Mali: Malick Bagayogo *Portugal: Joao Mota *Spain: Paloma Matta *USA: Michèle Collison, Andreas Katsulas, Lou Zeldis

References

External links

* * * *{{cite book , last = Gorguin , first = Iraj , title = Fifth Festival of Arts, Shiraz-Persepolis , year = 1971 , publisher = Public Relations Bureau of the Festival of Arts, Shiraz-Persepolis , location = Tehran 1971 plays English plays Plays based on classical mythology Works by Ted Hughes 1971 in Iran