Great Plays in Rehearsal; 5; Oedepus Rex
- Series
- Great Plays in Rehearsal
- Episode Number
- 5
- Episode
- Oedepus Rex
- Producing Organization
- WHA-TV (Television station : Madison, Wis.)
- WHA-TV (Television station : Madison, Wis.)
- Wisconsin Public Television
- Contributing Organization
- PBS Wisconsin (Madison, Wisconsin)
- Library of Congress (Washington, District of Columbia)
- AAPB ID
- cpb-aacip/29-20fttjxb
- NOLA Code
- GPRL
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- Description
- Episode Description
- The cast is in a table-reading stage of rehearsal for the play (the Watling translation of Sophocles's "Oedipus Rex"), which Aristotle called the perfect tragedy. Actors challenging the director's choice of translation and production plans for the chorus provoke somewhat heated discussion of the importance of re-acquainting modern audiences with the classics, and the role played by translation and theatrical convention in making such plays meaningful in a modern context. Mr. Salmon outlines the play's lasting bases of appeal to all audiences. He also explains why characterizations in Greek tragedy must be bigger than life size. (Description adapted from documents in the NET Microfiche)
- Series Description
- The great ideas of the worlds great dramatists from Sophocles to Shaw are vividly presented in this series through the technique of interrupted rehearsals. Television viewers share with a distinguished director and his cast the excitement and problems of discerning and conveying the authors meaning in plays such as Julius Caesar, The Misanthrope, The Masterbuilder, Edipus Rex, and Candida. Eric Salmon, British director and producer is commentator and on-camera play director. The series of ten one-hour kinescoped episodes was produced by WHA-TV, Madison, while Mr. Salmon was a visiting lecturer at the University of Wisconsin. Ray Stanley, producer of the series, is project director of the University of Wisconsin Television Laboratory and a producer for WHA-TV. Mr. Stanley was a program associate at the Center in 1957 and 1958, and formerly directed the award-winning Center series, The Friendly Giant. The actors for the series were chosen from participants in former WHA-TV productions, faculty and graduate students at the University of Wisconsin, and members of the Wisconsin Idea Theater and Madison Theater Guild. (Description adapted from documents in the NET Microfiche)
- Broadcast Date
- 1960-00-00
- Asset type
- Episode
- Genres
- Performance
- Topics
- Performing Arts
- Education
- Theater
- Rights
- Content provided from the media collection of Wisconsin Public Broadcasting, a service of the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board. All rights reserved by the particular owner of content provided. For more information, please contact 1-800-422-9707
- Media type
- Moving Image
- Credits
-
-
Host:
Salmon, Eric
Host: Salmon, Eric
Producer: Stanley, Ray
Producer: Stanley, Ray
Producing Organization: WHA-TV (Television station : Madison, Wis.)
Producing Organization: WHA-TV (Television station : Madison, Wis.)
Producing Organization: Wisconsin Public Television
- AAPB Contributor Holdings
-
Wisconsin Public Television (WHA-TV)
Identifier: WPT1.131.T5 MA (Wisconsin Public Television)
Format: 16mm film
Generation: Master
Duration: unknown
-
Wisconsin Public Television (WHA-TV)
Identifier: WPT1.131.T6 MA (Wisconsin Public Television)
Format: 16mm film
Generation: Master
Duration: unknown
-
Library of Congress
Identifier: 2300716-1 (MAVIS Item ID)
Format: 16mm film
Generation: Copy: Access
Color: B&W
If you have a copy of this asset and would like us to add it to our catalog, please contact us.
- Citations
- Chicago: “Great Plays in Rehearsal; 5; Oedepus Rex,” 1960-00-00, PBS Wisconsin, Library of Congress, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed May 14, 2026, http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-29-20fttjxb.
- MLA: “Great Plays in Rehearsal; 5; Oedepus Rex.” 1960-00-00. PBS Wisconsin, Library of Congress, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Web. May 14, 2026. <http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-29-20fttjxb>.
- APA: Great Plays in Rehearsal; 5; Oedepus Rex. Boston, MA: PBS Wisconsin, Library of Congress, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-29-20fttjxb