Get ready for the first detective story in world history

The director of this classic masterpiece by Sophocles is none other than Eirik Stubø. He is considered one of the most accomplished, acclaimed, and respected directors in Norwegian theater, and has created a number of outstanding productions, including on the international stage. He has served as artistic director at Rogaland Teater, the National Theater and Dramaten in Stockholm, and has won the Hedda Award for Best Director three times.

He is now making his debut at Kilden alongside his long-time collaborator, set and costume designer Kari Gravklev, and lighting designer Mathias Lundgren, who previously worked at Kilden the lighting design for Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s The Idiot.

“Oedipus and Antigone are two of the most important and best-known Greek tragedies we have,” Stubønotes.

In Kilden’s production, the audience gets to experience both plays:*Oedipus*beforeintermission and*Antigone*afterward. They are two parts of the trilogy about King Oedipus, a primal story, according to Stubø;

— The story of King Oedipus is, of course, an ancient myth. It is mentioned in the earliest writings, even then as an old story—so it is probably many thousands of years old.

But Sophocles writes his Oedipus story about 450 years before Christ. 

“The story of KingOedipus is often referred to as the world’s first detective story,” explains Stubø, describing the tale as mysterious and thrilling. 

— One of the interesting things here is that most of us in the audience are sitting there knowing something the main character doesn’t know yet. And when he finds out the truth, what does he do? That alone is very exciting in itself. 

In the first part of the play, we follow Oedipus, a man searching for the truth about himself and a mysterious murder. Actor Henrik Rafaelsen has been cast in the role of this classic character. 

Henrik has been a permanent member of Kilden theater Kilden 2020 and has appeared in most of our productions, most recently as Brother Daniel in the audience favorite *Himmeluret*. He has also worked as an actor at several major Nordic theaters and has appeared in a number of films and TV series.

So now he’s ready for the lead role as Oedipus, in a story that, according to director Stubø, tackles the big questions of identity;

—Although the cultural context of Oedipus may seem distant to us, the drama itself is so clear-cut. Who am I? Am I who I have been told I am, or am I someone entirely different?

The director believes that the need to know who you are and where you come from is something many people can relate to.

— It is great poetry, and it deals with something thataffects us all on a very, very fundamental level, he explains. 

He believes the story ofOedipuswillresonate with many people, since criminal investigations and murder mysteries are something many of us are familiar with from books and TV shows. Stubø also sees many parallels between Greek tragedy and today’s popular culture. 

— Both Game of Thrones and Tolkien have drawn heavily from Greek drama, Stubø notes.He also believes there are many similarities betweenOedipusand the protagonist ofDune.

— When Paul Atreides in Dune 2discovers that he is a Harkonnen, he understands more about himself, and that it was fated to turn out the way it did. Or when Luke Skywalker in Star Wars discovers who he really is, then he understands more about the course of his life. So fate is, in many ways, insight into identity—who we are. That is, at any rate, one way of understanding it.  

Birgitte Larsen plays the role of Antigone, Oedipus’s daughter. In the second part of the play, we follow her struggle for justice against a tyrannical king. 

Birgitte is from Feda and has been employed at the National Theater since 2004. She has appeared in a number of productions, including *Julemiddag* and *Jordbærstedet*, starred in several short films, and worked as a playwright, notably at Dramatikkens hus. *Oedipus/Antigone* is her first role at Kilden.  

“Antigone could almost be described as a Greta Thunberg-type figure—a young woman who stands up to politicians,” explains Stubø.

The play has been performed frequently in theaters, perhaps even more so than its predecessor, *Oedipus*. The director believes this may be because many people can identify with the heroine, Antigone. 

— The story of Antigone is just as relevant today as it was two thousand years ago. She is a young person who finds herself in conflict with a power-hungry politician, a woman who stands on the barricades for what she believes in. It is a rather timeless story. 

Actor Fridtjov Såheim Kilden also making his debut at Kilden . His motivation for performing in *Oedipus/Antigone* stems from his interest in the timeless themes of the play, which are particularly relevant given the state of the world right now.

“Democracy is a bit of a shaky business these days, so I think that performing in a play that, in many ways, is about the birth of democracy—well, that’s particularly interesting,” explains Fridtjov.

He has appeared in over 100 TV series and films, and is perhaps best known for his role as Jan Johansen in Lillyhammer and Biggen in Christmas in the Bend. 

— “Over the past 15 years, I’ve worked more in TV and film than in theater, so I am really looking forward to focusing on theater for an extended period,” says the actor.

InOedipus/Antigone, hewillplay the tyrannical King Creon, the man Antigone is fighting against.

— Essentially, the play is about how power corrupts a person, and how power makes people paranoid. That’s the main theme, heexplains.

When asked who the show is suitable for, the answer is clear;

— This is an exciting story that’s perfect for absolutely everyone. It’s a sexy project, and I truly believe it will be a fantastic show.