- Blind Oedipus and his daughter, Antigone, arrive in Athens,and he sends her to find out where exactly they are.
- A stranger approaches them and tells them they are on sacred, forbidden ground, called Colonus. Oops.
- Oedipus realizes that he has come to the Eumenides’ (aka the Furies) hangout, according to his predicted destiny.
- Old Oedipus asks the stranger to bring the king of Athens, Theseus, to him so they can have a chat.
- Oedipus prays to the Furies, explaining that Phoebus (Apollo) had predicted that he would find refuge in a final resting place right here on their sacred ground. He also says he’ll know it’s time when there’s an earthquake or thunder and lightning. If that’s not foreshadowing, we don’t know what is.
- Antigone warns her father that some old watchmen are coming to see what the deal is. They try to hide, but the Chorus (the group of old watchmen) finds them and wants to know who Oedipus is.
- Oedipus doesn’t want to tell the Chorus who he is or why he’s blind, because the story of his tragic life (killed his father, married his mother, you know the drill. And if you don’t, check out Oedipus the King) is just too awful.
- Once he finally admits what the deal is, the Chorus freaks out and tells Oedipus to leave their land so that he won’t bring a curse down on them, like he did his hometown of Thebes.
- Antigone has had enough of this and tells the Chorus to chill, that her father is suffering because of involuntary deeds (he didn’t know it was his father that he killed in self-defense, and had no idea that his wife was actually his mother). She begs them for mercy.
- The Chorus explains that they’re just scared, not trying to be mean.
- Antigone sees a woman approaching on horseback, and recognizes her sister, Ismene.
- Ismene says that she’s bringing news about her brothers, who are fighting over their father’s throne, which is currently occupied by their uncle Creon.
- She also reports that the current word on the street is that Creon is coming for Oedipus. He wants to make sure that he has control of where Oedipus is buried after he dies. If he’s buried in the homeland they might be cursed, but if his tomb is defiled they also might be cursed. Creon’s plan is to bury Oedipus right on the border where he can keep an eye on the tomb without it actually being on Theban land.
- Oedipus reminds them that he’s not dead yet, but he’s disappointed that he won’t get any Theban dirt on his grave because of the curse.
- The Chorus tells Oedipus how to prepare a sacred drink offering for the Furies so that he can defeat Creon.
- Ismene takes off to prepare the offering and Antigone stays with her dad. He’s too old and blind to go traveling again.
- Theseus, the lord of Athens, shows up and Oedipus tells him that when he dies, if Theseus takes care of him, he’ll get an offering. Very intriguing.
- Theseus agrees that Oedipus can stay in Athens and fight off his enemies right where he is. His work is through, and Theseus leaves.
- Antigone warns everyone that Creon and his entourage are here, and the Chorus promises to protect Oedipus.
- Creon arrives and tells Oedipus to come home. Oedipus refuses, and Creon orders his soldiers to seize Antigone and Ismene and take them away.
- Oedipus is really upset about his daughters’ kidnapping, and the Chorus tries to stop Creon.
- Theseus comes back and tells Creon to give it up, and orders his soldiers to chase down the girls.
- Antigone and Ismene are escorted back to their father and everyone is happy about the reunion.
- Theseus tells a funny story, that someone from Oedipus’ family (not from Thebes though) was at the altar of Poseidon, where Theseus was just making sacrifices. The long-lost relative would like a word with Oedipus.
- Theseus mentions that the stranger is from Argos, and Oedipus says he knows who it is and that he doesn’t want to talk to him. It’s his child, whom he hates (ouch).
- Antigone jumps in and asks her dad to please give her brother a chance. He can’t say no to her, and agrees to let his son come talk to him.
- Theseus leaves again, to go get the stranger.
- Polyneices, Oedipus’ son, shows up crying. The terrible sight of his old, blind father saddens him. He begs Oedipus to speak to him.
- Antigone tells Polyneices to just say what he wants.
- Polyneices explains that after he claimed Oedipus’ throne as the first-born son, his brother, Eteocles, drove him out of Thebes by persuading the city. Polyneices moved to Argos and married the king’s daughter so he could get an army and head back home to claim his throne.
- He’s here to ask for his father’s blessing before going into battle.
- Oedipus reminds Polyneices that, just as his brother drove him out of Thebes, Polyneices drove his own father (Oedipus) out of Thebes. He’s got a lot of nerve now asking for Oedipus’ help. Antigone and Ismene do help Oedipus now that he’s a homeless beggar, but Polyneices is a terrible son.
- Oedipus curses both Polyneices and Eteocles, disowning them.
- Polyneices is bummed and asks his sisters to bury him properly if the curse comes true and he dies.
- Antigone asks her brother to just give up and go back to Argos instead of destroying himself and his city.
- He says he can’t, because that would make him a wimp in front of his younger brother. And off he goes to his doom.
- It starts storming, and the Chorus gets scared.
- Oedipus explains that this is the prophesied end of his life, and asks for Theseus one more time.
- Theseus comes running and Oedipus tells him never to tell anyone where he dies so that it will be a secret source of strength for Theseus. He should only tell the next leader of Athens when he himself is about to die, so that the city will remain powerful.
- Oedipus tells his children to follow him to the sacred tomb where he will be hidden away, and everyone but the Chorus leaves.
- The Chorus prays that Oedipus will rest in peace.
- A Messenger comes and tells everyone that Oedipus is dead but that there’s not much of a story to tell since it wasn’t a murder.
- The Messenger says that Oedipus became the guide and led everyone down a road down into the earth, and asked his daughters to bathe him and give him new clothes. And then the earth thundered and the girls grieved and cried, and Oedipus told his daughters goodbye. They all cried and then, suddenly, it was silent. The voice of a god summoned Oedipus, which really freaked everybody out.
- The Messenger goes on to say that Oedipus asked Theseus to take care of his daughters, and then everyone except Theseus and Oedipus walked away. They looked back and saw that Oedipus was gone, and Theseus looked like he’d seen a ghost. The earth had opened up and painlessly swallowed Oedipus.
- Antigone comes back crying and confirms that her father is gone. She wishes she could die with her father because she’s so sad.
- The Chorus tells them not to be so upset, and Antigone tells Ismene that she wants to go see the place where their father was swallowed up.
- The Chorus tries to get Antigone and Ismene to stay in Athens, but Antigone wants to go home.
- Antigone asks to see her father’s grave, and Theseus tells her that it’s forbidden. So she asks to be taken to Thebes so she and Ismene can try to stop their brothers from killing each other.
- Theseus agrees, and the Chorus approves.