"OEDIPUS REX" PUZZLES PROPHESY

The history of theater dates back to Greece, circa 429 B.C. when early playwrights like Sophocles penned involving Greek tragedies. The newly opened Legacy Theatre of Stony Creek, Branford is offering audiences the unique opportunity to be carried dramatically to a land far away and long ago for a rare viewing of "Oedipus Rex,” a timeless classic. Ian Johnston has provided the translation. Oedipus, masterfully captured by Mitchel Kawash, is King of Thebes, a country burdened by a plague, not unlike the pandemic that threatens our world today. Anxious to end the illness, he learns that finding the murderer of King Laius is the question he must solve. Oedipus accuses Creon (Tom Schwans) of the crime but Creon vigorously denies the deed. Upon further investigation, Oedipus comes to a disturbing truth, that he himself may be the real culprit. Years before events took place for which he had no knowledge. Oracles had predicted that Oedipus would one day kill his father and marry his mother, horrible consequences he could not even fathom. Since those revelations, Oedipus has wandered the earth fleeing far from his place of birth to ensure that those events could never be realized. Suddenly he must fact the truth that they have, in fact, occurred and he is guilty of both. His wife, Jocasta (Mariah Sage) may, indeed, be his mother and he must accept the fact that he is adopted and King Laius is his real father. Fate and fatal flaws figure prominently in the plot. Director Keeley Baisden Knudsen keeps the drama intense with an involving set and intriguing lighting by Jamie Burnett, projections designed by Lauren Salatto-Rosenay, costumes by Katya Vetrov assisted by Callie Liberatore, and sound by Adam Jackson. Others in the cast include Michael Sayers, Tyrell Latouche, and chorus members Jessica Breda, Emmett Cassidy, F. Liam Devlin, Barbara Hentschel and Michael Steinman. The play continues until August 22, with performances Thursday at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., Friday at 8 p.m.., Saturday at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. For tickets ($45-75) call 203-315-1901 or online at LegacyTheatreCT.org. The theatre is located at 128 Thimble Island Road, Branford, exit 56 off 1-95. Of the 120 plays written by Sophocles, only seven remain and “Oedipus Rex” is considered his finest, the most powerful and purest example of tragic Greek drama.