Letter from Delphi
In the winter of 379 BC, the city of Thebes was liberated from the control of a Spartan-backed faction, a most popular dictatorship of that period, in a most contemporary fashion. This is how the father of all historians – and us journalists as well – Xenophon describes in his «Hellenica» (A History of My Times) the way the coup d’etat was carried out: «As for Phillidas, since the polemarchs always celebrate a festival in honor of Aphrodite upon the expiration of their term in office, he was making all the arrangements for them (…) and having long ago promised to bring them women, and the most stately and beautiful women there were in Thebes, he said he would do so at that time. And they – for they were that sort of men – expected to spend the night very pleasantly. When they had dined and with his zealous help had quickly become drunk, he (…) went out and brought the Melon and his followers, having dressed three of them as matrons and the others as their attendants.» Thus, just as in some current social events it is considered standard practice to advertise the prospect of «gorgeous babes» being present to attract members of the rich and famous, or just as the Greek media is currently full of references to terrorists in disguise, then as now the means to solve political – or other – issues bore a distinct resemblance. Now, this is not the case with the highly sophisticated XI International Meeting of Ancient Greek Drama (July 5-12, 2002) one of the most prominent activities of the European Cultural Center in Delphi held every two years at that awe-inspiring location. Understandably, the above-described event with the transvestite murderers could not have been mentioned in the scientific-minded «Theban Cycle» that was this year’s main theme – at least until yesterday morning’s colloquy. More highbrow subjects were on the agenda, such as: «Prolegomena to the Theban Mythological Cycle,» presented by Theophanis Kakridis, professor of classics at the University of Ioannina, or «The Oedipus complex – contemplation as reason in the theater, literature, epistemology and life,» by Associate Professor Martinidis of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, or even «The study of the enigma in the tragic myth of Oedipus» by Iraklis Logothetis, a subject which has engaged scholars, critics and shrinks from Aristotle onward. One of the most exciting papers yesterday was that of Professor of Psychiatry Nikos Tzavaras on «Philoctetes: the retired Oedipus.» The 11th meeting consists of an international congress, workshops, round-table discussions, exhibitions, in addition to a series of performances which included «Oedipus at Colonus,» written and directed by Wole Soyinka (the official program referred to the play once as based on «Oedipus Rex» and twice on «Oedipus at Colonus» – two completely different tragedies), «Thebais» (an opera based on Aeschylus’ «Seven Against Thebes» and Sophocles’ «Antigone»), directed by Luo Jin-Lin, and Euripides’ «Bacchae,» directed by Frederic Servant and Anne-Sylvie Meyza on Wednesday. A Turkish «Where is Oedipus» based on Oedipus Rex, written and directed by Sahika Tekand («The play follows the order of a crossword puzzle and the players are guided by the light.») will be shown tonight. Consequently, today we can look upon the Greek classics from the vantage point of the modern drama of «ideas.» With ancient Greek drama increasingly attracting wide audiences, the long-running (and desperate) scholarly investigation into the nature and forms of ancient production has reached a critical phase. Over the last 20 years, the European Cultural Center of Delphi has held meetings and seminars on the precise spot where, as the myth recounts, two eagles met that Zeus had released – one in the east, the other in the west. There, the king of the gods threw down the most Sacred Stone, marking thus the navel of the universe: Delphi, the place of the sacred oracle in old times, of meetings and congresses now. But hasn’t Greek tragedy played a substantial role in shaping our current civilization’s outlooks and tastes, anyway? Sure enough, the subject of Sophocles’ «Antigone» – the case of a young girl giving up her life and love for the sake of an ideal – is still valid, to name but one. In Delphi last Friday, the National Theater of Greece presented Sophocles’ tragedy of misguided heroism and misdirected loyalty as a premiere, since this production will have its Epidaurus opening later, on August 9-10. «Antigone» is directed by Niketi Kontouri and Lydia Koniordou – probably the most talented of our current tragediennes – plays the lead as a figure who is by no means simple, arousing both sympathy for her plight and revulsion at her fanaticism. In a play where one is tempted to praise Antigone as a saint-martyr and condemn Creon as a tyrant-dictator, Sophocles lay bare the quest for rational behavior in individuals and in society. In this tragedy, the two sons of Oedipus and brothers of Antigone (not to be confused with the homonymous hetaera of Athenogenes), Eteocles and Polyneices, are found dead on the battlefield. Out of respect for divine and unwritten laws, Antigone decides to honor the dead Polyneices with a burial. This decision goes against the orders of King Creon, who has stated that Polyneices should remain unburied since he fought against his own country. Also laying bare the hollow hypocrisy of the so-called rational realpolitik of today’s society is «Oyedipo at Kolhuini,» based on Sophocles’ play, a co-production by the European Cultural Center of Delphi and the Nevada Conservatory Theater, Las Vegas. More about this Oedipus – «based on real events…» – which «is woven around the standoff that occurred early this year between a boatload of Afghan refugees and the Australian government, which denied the passengers sanctuary,» next week.
