THE GOSPEL AT COLONUS

Audience Guide
A tale for our times told through the spoken word and song...
THE GOSPEL AT COLONUS
Adaptation and Original Lyrics by Lee Breuer • Adapted Lyrics by Bob Telson and Lee Breuer • Music by Bob Telson
Left photo, the singing roles, L-R: Jacqui Cross (Ismene), Michelle Alexander (Antigone) and Timothy Curry (Oedipus). Right photo, the speaking roles,
L-R: Felicia Dinwiddie (Evangelist Ismene) Eugene Lee (Preache­r Oedipus) and Janis Stinson (Evangelist Antigone). Photos: Kirktuck.com
T
he structure of THE GOSPEL AT
COLONUS has two men who
portray Oedipus — Eugene Lee
plays Preacher Oedipus and handles
the dialogue associated with the
character, and Timothy C. Curry plays
Oedipus who sings the role. Oedipus’
two daughters, Antigone and Ismene,
are also both portrayed by two
actresses — Janis Stinson plays
Evangelist Antigone and Michelle
Alexander plays Antigone; Felicia
Dinwiddie plays Evangelist Ismene
and Jacqui Cross plays Ismene.
The Preacher and Evangelist roles provide commentary on their characters
as well as in portraying the emotional,
intellectual, and spiritual life of their
characters and act as an emissary between the characters in the story and
the audience, translating the Greek
tragedy into a morality tale for our
times. In each pairing one actor speaks
the role, and the other actor sings it.
This creates a separation between the
intellectual life of a character which is
depicted in a rather formal, presentational manner following the style of
Greek theatre, and the emotional/spiritual inner life of the characters which is
full-bodied, robust gospel music.
Greek theatre has a lot of repetition
and a chorus which echoes a characters thoughts and actions, sometimes
illustrating what is going on inside of
a character that is unspoken. Likewise,
gospel music and the blues are musical
forms which rely on repetition, as do
many of the rituals associated with a
religious church service. In a Christian
church the deity is represented by
three parts — the Father, the Son, and
the Holy Spirit — but they are all ONE.
Likewise our two Oedipus’ are ONE and
represent the many faceted and complicated aspects of the human psyche,
emotionally, intellectually and spiritually, conveying all that is actually said
and also that which lives only in the
mind and goes unsaid. Our brains are
excellent pattern-matchers. Repetition
creates a pattern, which consequently
and naturally grabs our attention at
first, and then creates the comfort of
familiarity. Repetition creates familiarity, and understanding, so what at first
may be strange, after repeated exposure becomes clear and understandable. We have to repeat things more
than once for them to finally sink into
our memory. Our grandparents repeat
family stories over and over and in that
repetition they become not only a part
of our memory, but ingrained within
the identity of each of our families and
who we are. In BB King’s beloved blues
hit “The Thrill Is Gone” he sings:
The thrill is gone
The thrill is gone away
The thrill is gone baby
The thrill is gone away.
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THE GOSPEL AT COLONUS
Tickets: 512-476-0541 x1 • zachtheatre org
This production is sponsored in part by the National Endowment for the Arts
Gather at the River
A note from Production Dramaturg Russell M. Dembin. Audience Guide content prepared by Russel M. Dembin.
“In the words of that old hymn—let’s hope that your refrain will often
be: ‘Shall we gather at
the river?’” –Lady Bird Johnson
THE GOSPEL
AT COLONUS
Adaptation and Original Lyrics
by Lee Breuer
as the organist for celebrated
gospel singers the Five Blind
Boys of Alabama.
Adapted Lyrics by
Bob Telson and Lee Breuer
Music by Bob Telson
When Lady Bird Johnson
spoke at the launch of the
Town Lake Beautification
Program in 1971, her remarks
evoked an image of a
meeting tent: She expressed
a desire for Austin’s Town
Lake (which was named
for her in 2007) to become
a “‘people’s place’ for all
the citizens of this great,
growing city.” At the end of
her address, Mrs. Johnson
reinforced the idea of Town
Lake as a gathering spot:
“In the words of that old
hymn—let’s hope that your
refrain will often be: ‘Shall
we gather at the river?’”
ZACH Theatre’s staging of
THE GOSPEL AT COLONUS,
a show in which the concept
of community is central,
draws inspiration from Mrs.
Johnson’s figurative meeting
tent by setting the action
in a revival camp meeting
tent designed by Court
Watson. The costumes for
our production bring people
together in another way,
using color to unify differ-
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Continued from Page 1
Within this repetition the intensity of
feeling grows with each telling of it,
and if we were watching his audience
while he sings it we would find that
they begin to groove, and move more
and more as the song progresses even
though the lyrics are basically the
same over and over. Like a meditation
prayer that is recited over and over,
new meanings and discoveries become
illuminated and we begin to connect
with something deep within ourselves
wherein lies the truth.
At the top of THE GOSPEL AT
COLONUS, I have our cast singing
Down By The Riverside because we have
set our play in a revival church meeting tent by a riverside, but it is also the
physical location of our theatre, on
Riverside Drive by Lady Bird Lake.
ent performers who play the
same character (Oedipus,
Antigone and Ismene).
THE GOSPEL AT COLONUS
fostered a special community of artists who were
associated with it from its
inception in 1983. The work
was created by Lee Breuer, a
founding co-artistic director
of the avant-garde theatre
collective Mabou Mines,
and Bob Telson, a former
member of the Philip Glass
Ensemble who was serving
The lyrics to this song are:
Gonna lay down my burden,
Down by the riverside,
Down by the riverside,
Down by the riverside.
Gonna lay down my burden,
Down by the riverside,
Down by the riverside.
I ain’t gonna study war no more,
study war no more,
ain’t gonna study war no more.
I ain’t gonna study war no more,
study war no more,
ain’t gonna study oh war no more.
This verse and chorus are repeated
three times and as you will note there
is very little change in the lyrics, but I
guarantee the conviction with which
our cast begins to communicate these
words grows in intensity with each time
Similarly, ZACH’s production
showcases a local community of artists cultivated
over two decades, and the
current version features 14
cast members from the 1996
presentation, which was also
directed by Dave Steakley
and had Allen Robertson
as Musical Director. ZACH’s
choir for the current staging
incorporates singers from
several local congregations.
Above, Lady Bird Johnson in 1974
at Town Lake (now Lady Bird Lake).
Photo courtesy of the LBJ Library.
they repeat it and you will feel that as
an audience member — your desire
to participate will grow with each repetition. In Oedipus’ story the characters
have experienced terrible wars, family
feuds, and strife between nations.
Oedipus now at the end of his life in
THE GOSPEL AT COLONUS is seeking
his final resting place where he might
experience reconciliation, forgiveness for his actions, and redemption
from the citizens of Colonus. Likewise,
the Colonus citizens and Oedipus are
“studying war no more” as Oedipus
seeks peace at the end of his days and
Colonus wants peace between nations,
and to enjoy their beautiful paradise,
a “land of running horses where leaves
and berries throng, and wine dark
ivy climbs the bough and a sweet
sojourning nightingale murmurs all
night long.”
Synopses of the Sophocles plays on which THE GOSPEL AT COLONUS is based
OEDIPUS REX
Oedipus, king of the ancient Greek
city of Thebes, wants to cure a plague
that afflicts his people. An oracle says
he can lift the curse by killing the man
who murdered the previous king,
Laius. Not realizing that Laius was
the man he killed when he first came
to Thebes, Oedipus vows to find the
murderer.
In her grief over the revelation,
Jocasta hangs herself. Oedipus strikes
at his eyes with the golden brooches
from her robe, blinding himself.
Ashamed, he has Creon, Jocasta’s
brother, send him away, leaving his
daughters Antigone and Ismene and
his two sons in Creon’s care.
OEDIPUS AT COLONUS
Oedipus and his daughter Antigone
have been wandering for years and
Jocasta, Laius’ widow and now
they arrive in Colonus. A man tells
Oedipus’ queen, tells Oedipus not
them to leave because they are on
to worry. To prove that prophecies
don’t always come true, she explains sacred ground, reserved only for the
how an oracle once declared that her Furies, the goddesses of fate. Oedipus
has the man send for Theseus, King
son would grow up to kill his father,
of Athens, saying that Theseus will
but that she and Laius escaped that
fate by having a shepherd take their benefit from helping him. Ismene,
Oedipus’ other daughter joins
baby son to a mountain and leave
him to die. This story doesn’t comfort Antigone and Oedipus to say that
his sons Polyneices and Eteocles
Oedipus, as he recalls an oracle that
said he would kill his father and sleep have fought over Thebes. Eteocles
won and now he and Creon rule the
with his mother, and he begins to
city. Ismene also reports that Creon
suspect his guilt.
is coming to persuade Oedipus to
return to Thebes, because an oracle
Oedipus discovers that he was
adopted and realizes that he is Laius said misfortune would fall on the city
if Oedipus is buried elsewhere.
and Jocasta’s son, and that he really
did murder his father and marry his
mother.
Theseus visits Oedipus and
agrees to keep him safe in Colonus.
Theseus goes back to Athens and
Creon appears, urging Oedipus to
come with him to Thebes; when he
refuses, Creon abducts Oedipus’
daughters, but Theseus rescues
them and brings them back to
Oedipus.
Polyneices arrives, trying to get
Oedipus to return with him to
Thebes. However, Oedipus sees
that Polyneices just wants to
defeat Eteocles and he predicts
that his sons will kill each other.
Oedipus hears thunder and takes
it as a sign he will die soon. He tells
Theseus that good luck will come to
Athens if he is buried there, as long
as Theseus tells no one—not even
Antigone and Ismene—where the
grave is. Oedipus asks Theseus to
look after his daughters and he dies.
Jean-Antoine-Théodore Giroust:
Oedipus at Colonus, 1788.
Oil on canvas
Like Greek playwright Sophocles,
the French painter Giroust
dramatizes the confrontation
between the blind king Oedipus
and his son Polynices, who had
sent him into exile. The drama
of Polynices and his two sisters
pleading with their father to return
to Thebes unfolds on a stagelike
space. The gestures—especially
the outstretched arm of Oedipus at
the center of the composition—are
dramatically powerful and eloquent.
(dmaresources.org.)
ca·thar·sis (from the Greek meaning “cleansing”) is the purification of emotions—
especially pity and fear—through art that results in renewal and restoration
Producing Artistic Director Dave Steakley
in an interview with Austin-American
Statesman writer Michael Barnes.
Michael Barnes: What initially drew you
to such an unusual show that combines
ancient Greek tragedy and AfricanAmerican gospel?
Dave Steakley: I was raised in the
Southern Baptist church, and as a
teenager I preached the gospel at little
country churches, including the Texas
ranching community where I grew up.
When I came to Austin to attend UT,
I sought out a variety of churches to
experience a broader spectrum of faith.
My older siblings had already instilled in
me a deep love for soul music, and for my
Plan II senior thesis I wrote and directed a
play called STAR FACTORY, about the rise
of Motown, for which I needed African
American actors and vocalists. I visited
black churches to find and recruit talent
and for the first time I experienced
“The authenticity and conviction
of the performers was so moving...
no one was acting, they were
living it in real time.”
worship services that I deeply connected
to—the amazing music and impassioned
preaching really changed the trajectory
of my life.
I moved to New York City in the mid-’80s,
and read a New York Times story about
this new musical called THE GOSPEL AT
COLONUS that intrigued me, melding the
ancient Greek tragedy of Oedipus with a
gospel Pentecostal church service.
I was blown away by the cast of legendary gospel groups like the Five Blind Boys
of Alabama, the Steeles, the Soul Stirrers,
Harlem’s Abyssinian Baptist Church Choir
and an “unknown” actor named Morgan
Freeman as the preacher, prior to his
big film success. The audience stood
spontaneously at times, clapping and
The Guthrie Theater’s 1987 production of THE GOSPEL AT
COLONUS. Photo :The StarTribune.com.
singing along; I had never experienced
this in a theatre before. The authenticity
and conviction of the performers was
so moving—cast members were
weeping, shouting with jubilation
and experiencing true cathartic
transformation—no one was acting,
they were living it in real time.
Lee Breuer on THE GOSPEL AT COLONUS
An interview by theatre scholar Gerald Rabkin referencing the original 1983 Brooklyn Academy of Music production
Gerald Rabkin: Tell me about the
concept of THE GOSPEL AT COLONUS:
Lee Breuer: There’s a split between
who’s playing the preacher and who
is playing the Oedipus character.
One actor is playing the minister and
narrating the Oedipus character, who
is being sung by a gospel singer. So
the role is split. It’s more a narrative
work because I was in Japan for 10
weeks and I liked the way how in the
Kabuki narrative dramatic elements
are balanced. So COLONUS has moved
that way: toward a story-telling and a
narrative.
GR: Was part of the attraction of
COLONUS, then, the fact that Oedipus
is blind from the outset?
LB: Yes, and another part of its
attraction is that it’s a sermon on
being blessed after being cursed in life,
finally being blessed before one dies.
I’ve always been interested in the idea
of catharsis because I’ve always been
a bit of a maverick. I really feel that if
you go one step further with cathartic
theatre you might find pity and terror
turning into joy and ecstasy. We have
and the drama interspersed. In other
words, when a character has a few
lines he’ll say them, but basically it’s a
continuous song. It’s sung by a famous
singer who narrates in this wonderful
storytelling fashion, accompanied by
a Japanese stringed instrument. In a
way that’s not too different from what
we’re doing. When there’s a little action
the dialogue will come out of that. But
it’s either being told as a sermon or it’s
being told as a gospel song.
a jubilee in this, an expression of
pure ecstatic joy. It may not seem
typically tragic in the way we’ve
come to understand what the tragic
experience should be, but I have a
feeling that catharsis can go right on
through pity and terror into joy. And
that’s what this is about.
GR: There’s always been a musical
element in your work, but it seems
that in recent years it’s become more
dominant.
LB: I’m more and more interested in
Japanese theatre. In the Noh and the
Kabuki, the narration is basically sung
What we found in COLONUS was
that we had a wonderful new key
to classical narrative—a didactic or
oratorical device—by using the preaching rhythm inherent in the Baptist and
Pentecostal churches. The black church
experience here is a new idea about
tragic rhythms and, who knows, maybe
closer to what the original Greek
performances were like.
Excerpt from an interview commissioned
by the Humanities Program of the
Next Wave Festival, portions of which
appeared in the festival magazine,
On the Next Wave. The full version was
published in Performing Arts Journal,
vol. 8, no. 1 (1984).
Sketches for THE GOSPEL AT COLONUS by Scenic and Costume
Designer Court Watson. L-R: Singer Antigone and Speaker Antigone;
Singer Oedipus; Praise Dancer.
Above: A model of the set, also designed by Court Watson.
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This project is funded and supported in part by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and by the City of Austin through the Economic Development Department/Cultural Arts Division believing an investment in the Arts is an investment in Austin’s future. Visit Austin at NowPlayingAustin.com.