The New Israeli Opera

Director
Rina Yerushalmi

Set Designer
David Sharir


Strauss’ opera is based on Sophocles’ Greek tragedy, which was originally performed in the huge open-air Greek amphitheaters. This production was also presented in a Roman open-air amphitheatre in Caesarea. In this production the story was placed in a slaughterhouse palace. Blood was everywhere and piles of bones and carcasses were mounted on stage and piled high from every window.

The director Rina Yerushalmi and I worked on the concept and design of the slaughterhouse look and feel, the horrific blood splattered remnants of slaughter, which included the dancers’ horned headpieces, bones and carcasses, props, and costume pieces, making them symbolic but all the more terrifying.