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James Conlon on Oedipus Rex

Posted on: June 15, 2021

In anticipation of LA Opera's On Now streaming of Oedipus Rex, Conductor and LA Opera's Richard Seaver Music Director, James Conlon, delves into the one-act opera's mythic and musical power. Composer Igor Stravinsky and librettist Jean Cocteau based Oedipus Rex on the ancient Greek tragedy of the same name by Sophocles—yes, the one where Oedipus unknowingly kills his own father and marries his mother. The 1927 opera is a highly stylized and ritualistic work.