Auditor’s report Yerami Amir / premiere
Oedipus 2023 is a different kind of politician, a leader who is running for elections and is on the verge of a great victory. The candidate promises a “new politics” free of corruption (reminds us of something). He also undertakes to reveal a distressing truth from his past, which sits on his conscience. He pays a heavy price for that.
The story begins the moment the campaign ends and the countdown to the final results begins. The plot takes place, most of the time, in the candidate’s election headquarters. Just before Oedipus fulfills his dream and records a record in his career, something goes wrong, as in any good drama.
All this introduction describes in general terms the framework story, relatively light, which is intended to make the Greek tragedy accessible to the present day. The modern drama, written by Robert Icke, is based on the powerful drama of Sophocles, but is not faithful to the original as the theater indicates. Why is she loyal? To a certain shallowness of the story, to lovable gimmicks in the direction and almost a telenovela at the end.
All this can be accommodated if the text is strong and the acting is excellent. Indeed, the show, although not perfect, flows and the cast is excellent. I will not enter here into a psychological analysis of the plot and the characters and I will not introduce Freud into the story. Although we know the bitter end, the director Irad Rubinstein has created a suspense story here, which even manages to surprise.
Amos is innocent, powerful and soft, charismatic and vulnerable, he is Oedipus – a tragic hero, who cannot control his destiny and who was prophesied to kill his father and sleep with his mother. Tamam, a player with presence, delivers the goods. He is reliable and sympathetic. I would be happy to see more emotion and more openness in him.
Karen Moore is Jocasta his wife, opinionated and submissive, childlike and responsible, maternal and productive. The Moore Foundation has it. The complex relationship between her and Amos Tamm is the heart of the play. Their intimate scenes, which overwhelm the pain, are the most beautiful moments of the show. Theater at its best.
Miriam Zohar in the role of Meropa, the woman who raised Oedipus, is touching and so human, and no wonder she gets a lot of applause at the end. The other actors in the production are also good and fit well into the winding plot. I loved the excellent Yitzchak Hezekiah in the role of the prophet Tiresias, Michael Koresh in the sensitive role of the father of the Korin household and the sexy Naama Setrit in the role of Antigone.
The great secret of Oedipus, which is revealed towards the end, is the climax of the play, which ends with a big bang. But “Oedipus” in Camry is no longer a play. It is a powerful and moving experience. People come to the theater for such experiences.