The classic Greek tragedy "Oedipus rex" by Sophocles, perhaps the earliest and most dramatic example of the "big reveal" in theater, formed the basis of an opera-oratorio written by Igor Stravinsky in the 1920s, with a text translated into Latin from a libretto by Jean Cocteau. San Francisco Symphony music director Esa-Pekka Salonen and famed theater director Peter Sellars are collaborating on a staged version of it this weekend, paired with a production of Stravinsky's nod to his own Russian Orthodox roots, the "Symphony of Psalms." The three performances, in addition to winding up the Symphony's subscription season, are also launching a four-year Salonen-Sellars partnership, which will produce three other stagings of major works. The San Francisco Symphony Chorus will be on hand to participate as the Greek chorus, and the vocal talent will include tenor Sean Panikkar as Oedipus, mezzo-soprano J'Nai Bridges as Jocasta (his mother-wife!) and bass-baritone Willard White in the roles of Creon, the Messenger and Tiresias. Performance times are 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday in San Francisco's Davies Hall. Tickets, $20-$85, are available at https://www.sfsymphony.org/ and (415) 864-6000.
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