''Oedipus Rex'' is a 1957 film, a film version of the Canadian

Stratford Festival The Stratford Festival is a theatre festival which runs from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was formerly known as the Stratford Shakespearean Festival ...

production of the

William Butler Yeats William Butler Yeats (13 June 186528 January 1939) was an Irish poet, dramatist, writer and one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. He was a driving force behind the Irish Literary Revival and became a pillar of the Irish liter ...

adaptation of the play ''

Oedipus Rex ''Oedipus Rex'', also known by its Greek title, ''Oedipus Tyrannus'' ( grc, Οἰδίπους Τύραννος, ), or ''Oedipus the King'', is an Athenian tragedy by Sophocles that was first performed around 429 BC. Originally, to the ancient Gr ...

'' by

Sophocles Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or co ...

. The actors performed wearing masks designed by

Tanya Moiseiwitsch Tatiana Benita Moiseiwitsch, (3 December 1914 – 19 February 2003) was an English theatre designer. Born in London, the daughter of Daisy Kennedy, an Australian concert violinist and Benno Moiseiwitsch, a Russian/Ukrainian-born classical pianis ...

, as was the practice in

Ancient Greek theatre Ancient Greek theatre was a Theatre, theatrical culture that flourished in ancient Greece from 700 BC. The Polis, city-state of Classical Athens, Athens, which became a significant cultural, political, and religious place during this period, was ...

Cast

* Douglas Campbell as Oedipus *Eleanor Stuart as Jocasta *Robert Goodier as Creon * William Hutt as Chorus Leader * Donald Davis as Tiresias *

Douglas Rain Douglas James Rain (March 13, 1928 – November 11, 2018) was a Canadian actor and narrator. Although primarily a stage actor, he is perhaps best known for his voicing of the HAL 9000 computer in the film '' 2001: A Space Odyssey'' (1968) and i ...

as Messenger *

Tony Van Bridge Valentine Anthony Neil "Tony Van" Bridge CM (28 May 1917 – 20 December 2004) was a British television and theatre actor and director. Early life Bridge was born in London and first appeared as a child actor at the age of ten, and enrolle ...

as Man From Corinth *

Eric House Eric House (November 22, 1921 – March 21, 2004) was a Canadian actor."Eric House, veteran stage actor and director, dies of emphysema at 82". ''Canadian Press'', April 8, 2004. Although he appeared in film, television and stage roles throughout h ...

as Shepherd / Old Priest *Roland Bull as Chorus * Robert Christie as Chorus *

Ted Follows Edward James Follows (November 30, 1926 – October 21, 2016) was a Canadian film, television and stage actor. He was best known for playing the role of Macduff in '' Macbeth'' at the Stratford Festival and the 1961 CBC Television film adapta ...

as Chorus *David Gardner as Chorus *

Bruno Gerussi Bruno Santos Gerussi (7 May 1928 – 21 November 1995) was a Canadian stage and television actor, best known for the lead role in the CBC Television series '' The Beachcombers''. He also performed onstage at the Stratford Festival, worked in rad ...

as Chorus *Richard Howard as Chorus *

Roland Hewgill Roland Hewgill (February 11, 1929 – November 9, 1998) was a Canadian actor."Hewgill began career in Stratford". ''The Globe and Mail'', November 13, 1998. Primarily a stage actor, most famously associated with the Stratford Festival, he also had ...

as Chorus *Edward Holmes as Chorus *James Manser as Chorus *

Louis Negin Louis Negin (20 October 1929 – 2 December 2022) was a British-born Canadian actor, best known for his roles in the films of Guy Maddin."Enchantment". ''In Toronto'', September 2011. Career Born in London, England, and raised in Toronto, Ontari ...

as Chorus *Grant Reddick as Chorus *

William Shatner William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...

as Chorus * Bruce Swerdfager as Chorus *

Neil Vipond Neil Chester Vipond (December 24, 1929 – July 15, 2022) was an American-based Canadian actor and stage director. Life and career Neil Vipond, the son of a salesman and a former performer on the vaudeville circuit, was born and grew up in Toron ...

as Chorus *Gertrude Tyas as Nurse *Naomi Cameron as Ismene *Barbara Franklin as Antigone

Song

After the film was released comedic musician

Tom Lehrer Thomas Andrew Lehrer (; born April 9, 1928) is an American former musician, singer-songwriter, satirist, and mathematician, having lectured on mathematics and musical theater. He is best known for the pithy and humorous songs that he recorded in ...

, noting that the film lacked a theme song "the people could hum", composed "Oedipus Rex", a satirical "theme song" for the film. The song is included on Lehrer's album ''

An Evening Wasted With Tom Lehrer ''An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer'' is an album recorded by Tom Lehrer, the well-known satirist and Harvard lecturer. The recording was made on March 20–21, 1959 in Sanders Theater at Harvard. In 2020, Lehrer donated all of his lyrics and mus ...

''.

Reception

Theresa Loeb Cone of the ''

Oakland Tribune The ''Oakland Tribune'' is a weekly newspaper published in Oakland, California, by the Bay Area News Group (BANG), a subsidiary of MediaNews Group. Founded in 1874, the ''Tribune'' rose to become an influential daily newspaper. With the declin ...

'' praised the cast, costumes, cinematography and score, but felt that the film was "too pretentious for enjoyment".

References

External links

* Canadian drama films Canadian films based on plays English-language Canadian films Films based on ancient Greek plays Films based on classical mythology Films based on works by Sophocles Incest in film Patricide in fiction Masks in theatre Works based on Oedipus Rex Adaptations of works by W. B. Yeats 1950s English-language films 1950s Canadian films {{1950s-Canada-film-stub