AI Overview
Modern retellings of the Oedipus and Jocasta story include the play
Oedipus by Robert Icke and the novel The Children of Jocasta by Natalie Haynes, which re-centers the narrative on the female characters. Other adaptations include the 1980s BBC trilogy Oedipus the King and the 1987 Brazilian soap opera Mandala, which update the story with modern settings and clothing.
Plays and theater
Oedipus by Robert Icke: This play, which had a successful run in London and premiered on Broadway in 2025, stars Mark Strong as Oedipus and Lesley Manville as Jocasta.
Ellen McLaughlin's 2004 adaptation: This version of the play uses modern language and draws parallels to the COVID-19 pandemic, setting the story in a world where a plague ravages society.
Novels
The Children of Jocasta by Natalie Haynes: This novel reframes the story from the perspectives of Jocasta and her daughter Ismene, giving a voice to the female characters who are often overlooked in the original myth.
Television and radio
Oedipus the King (1986): A BBC adaptation of the story featuring actors in modern dress.
Mandala (1987): A Brazilian TV soap opera that loosely adapted the story for a modern audience.
CBS Radio Mystery Theater: Broadcast a version of the story called "So Shall Ye Reap" set in 1851 in what was then the U.S. Territory of New Mexico.
