“Oedipus the King, MAMA!” is playing at the Getty Villa.
By LIBBY MOTIKA
Circling the News Contributor
It has been 19 years of Classical plays staged at the Getty Villa. Tragedies by the great luminaries, Sophocles, Euripides and Aeschylus and comedies by Aristophanes, and Plautus remind us of the vagaries of human nature and the capriciousness of the gods.
But this year, the heavy atmosphere in the world and the recent catastrophe in the Palisades called upon the guaranteed joy and reckless abandon of the Troubadour Theatre Company.
The troupe is known for their loose telling of ancient stories by inserting music, albeit humorously adapted to the story. In 2011, they staged For the Birds (Aristophanes), and in 2013, ABBAmemnon in the Villa’s indoor auditorium.
This year, the troupe brought their clever reimagining to one of the greats to the stage, the king of rock n’ roll: Oedipus the King, MAMA!
Matt Walker (Oedipus), artistic director of the Troubadour Theater Company since 1995, played out the story of the doomed king Oedipus, and the rumpus began.
Dressed in his signature white, rhinestone jumpsuit, Elvis, Oedipus, goofy, arrogant and hilarious, unraveled his fate, aided by the cast, known as the Troubies. If you could follow the story, complicated at best and in so many ways interrupted by tom foolery and just pure silliness, you were in for a full theatrical experience
It does, however, help to remember the original curse on Oedipus that would ultimately catch up with him. Gradually, Oedipus learns that he has fulfilled a prophecy by unknowingly killing his father, Laius, and marrying his mother, Jocasta, the queen. Overwhelmed by the devastating truth, Jocasta commits suicide, and Oedipus blinds himself and goes into exile, leaving Thebes to deal with the tragic consequences of fate and his own actions.
Pretty tragic stuff, to be sure, but the Troubies bring a level of grim exaggeration to the story, and much ribaldry. The double entendre and the over-the-top “dirty” jokes evoke the crowds that Shakespeare entertained.
The company has also made much of interacting with the audience: sexy Jocasta, at one point, shinnies up the stair railing wilding flirting with audience members. Elvis, too, maximizes his lasciviousness.
This show is not advised for children.
Much can be said for the professionals of this troupe—all of whom have experience as writers, directors and performers for film, television, orchestra and even circus.
Their sheer creative genius flowers in the clever rewording of the songs to match the story, and the perfect placement that matches the action. For example, All Shook Up: a rewritten version of this Elvis hit, is used at the climax of the play, right after Oedipus learns the truth of his identity from the blind prophet Teiresias.
The play is just the right entertainment for the moment, especially for the Palisadians who lost their town in January.
Performances continue through September 27 at 8 p.m. at the Getty Villa. For tickets: click here.
It was very entertaining and the music was great. We laughed continuously through the performance