The London Theatre Review: Oedipus

By Ross

The draw wasn’t immediate. I’m not exactly sure why. But I needed a little convincing to take on this adaptation of Oedipus, now playing at the Wyndham’s Theatre in the West End. The twisted tale goes back to Greek mythology and Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex (or Oedipus the King), but was elevated into social consciousness by Freud’s use of structure to describe his theory of unconscious desire. But thankfully I was shifted in my thinking, mainly because Robert Icke, the director and creator of this magnificent adaptation, much like he did with the incomparable The Doctor, has taken this framing and electrified it with organic explosive tragedy and heartfelt passion.

Starring the electric and powerful Mark Strong (Young Vic/West End/Broadway’s A View From the Bridge) in the titular character as an engaging politician, he stands upright from the very beginning, projected large and true on the curtain, founding a new movement forward in a topical speech video presented before us. He captivatingly voices his stance, projecting belief structures and election-day promises that fill our hearts with solidness and compassion. He’s brilliantly solid, addressing the rumors head-on that swirl around his birth certificate (with a quick jab at that horrible orange monster) and his pedigree, defying expectations and setting him on the track toward greatness and a landslide election. We watch with wonder, curious how Sophocles’ foundational prophecy and the knowing tragedy of Oedipus’s birth will find its way into this captivating political drama, and what will become of them all, even though we have a pretty good idea where this is all heading.

The curtain rises to the starkest of campaign headquarters on election night, with Strong’s formidable Oedipus standing confidently before his crew. Political placards vibrate with Obama energy surrounding him and his wife, played to electrifying heights by the incomparable Lesley Manville (Bristol Old Vic/BAM’s A Long Day’s Journey Into Night) as his devoted politician’s wife, Jocasta. Brilliantly, Icke has reformed Sophocles’ epic story into a political nailbiter while retaining the original names, centered around a stop-clock counting down the hours and minutes until the outcome of the election will be confirmed. But that clock also marks the approaching inevitable unmasking and unraveling, where self-knowledge will be thrust forward, and tragedy awaits for this self-righteous man and his dynamic, devoted wife. But the tension of this transcendent drama is in the movement forward to the unveiling, and the ‘how’ and ‘what’ Icke has in store for us along the path to the inevitable.

Intent on truth-telling, Strong’s Oedipus, surrounded by family and supporters, digs his own modernized grave in his full disclosure stance and his sharp confidence that easily shifts focus to delusion and doubt, especially in regards to his brother-in-law, Creon, played meticulously well by Michael Gould (Donmar’s The Cherry Orchard). Oedipus is suspicious, without much merit, of the man who has tried to steer him towards greatness and success, maybe for ulterior motives, but with a protective intent that dissipates inside Oedipus almost instantaneously after hearing the prophecies from a new age seer. The future teller of insights and predictions of Oedipus’ tragic foundations, Teiresias, played solidly by Samuel Brewer (Parkwood’s Frankenstein), slides into the room, raging and raving like a madman. But there is also another side of him. His prophetic insight catches and bites into Oedipus’ faith and overt confidence like a diseased tick, and a shift occurs right before our eyes and inside Strong’s. It’s deliciously rendered, this mental reframing, and we see the tragic flaws light up inside his Oedipus, waiting in the backroom to shift us forward into the land of solid truths and bloody destruction.

So much is unpacked, with tense foreshadowing of dark secrets that will upturn the tables that slowly keep disappearing from inside that room, dynamically realized realistically by set designer Hildegard Bechtler (West End’s Player Kings) and illuminated impeccably by designer Natasha Chivers (West End/Broadway’s The Hills of California). The space empties out symbolically, delivering this family away from all that they believe holds them together in humanity. It’s visceral in its undercurrent, with a strong cast of characters and actors lending their support to the doomed, but soon-to-be victorious Oedipus. The tension is hypnotic, especially around their rebellious out-spoken daughter, Antigone, played vibrantly by Phia Saban (HBO’s “House of the Dragon“), and the two dynamic dude-ish sons, embodied beautifully by Jordan Scown (Wolverhampton Grand’s The History Boys) and James Wilbraham (ITV’s “Tom Jones“). Their squabbling and jabbing at the familial table, including the touching coming-out moment, are filled to overflowing with dread and imminent destructive qualities that play with our senses. Especially as we watch Oedipus’ grand-dame mother, played crotchety and cleverly by June Watson (Royal Court/BAM’s Escaped Alone), dangle a secret before us all. But we will have to wait with bated breath for the unwrapping, knowing that this will start an avalanche of self-knowledge that will empty out the room of all they hold solidly within.

Riveting from beginning to end, delivering so much more than what is essential to the tragedy of Oedipus, the beating heart remains solidly in Manville and Strong’s dynamic chemistry and doomed determination. They elevate and ignite the space higher and higher as the clock ticks down bringing them closer and closer to enlightenment and destruction. Oedipus jokes and teases, without knowing what is approaching, about being blind to some aspects of his family and life, and asks questions that only we can see the problematic tricky answers hidden in the deliciously smart and thoughtful text of this play. It’s powerfully created, expertly delivered, and dynamic and heartbreaking in its combustible, fatal, internal destruction. Icke has created something magnificent and utterly devastating, and I’m hoping it will jump over the ocean and land on Broadway so I can watch it all unravel one more time.

Oedipus, created by Robert Icke after Sophocles is now playing at Wyndham’s Theatre, London, until January 4th, 2025. For information and tickets, click here.