Moses. The ‘Exagoge’ of Ezekiel. ‘Moses and the Shepherd’ by Rumi
Friday, May 8, 2026 – 18:30: Ioannou Centre, 66 St Giles
Sunday, May 10 – 12.30: Iffley Church Hall
Monday, May 11 – 6pm: Wolfson College Buttery
David Wiles directs a production of the extant fragments of a tragedy written in Alexandria in the second century BC. Drawn from the Book of Exodus, the story tells of the Hebrews’ escape from Egypt. The play was written by a Jew, and is the first extant dramatization of a biblical text.
The performance will mostly be given in ancient Greek, with the opening scene played in English. The project follows on from Hrosvita’s Martyrdom of the Three Virgins performed in Latin in 2025, and prior to that Seneca’s Octavia in a Renaissance translation.
The cast are a mix of students and seniors. The production style will be choral, using movement to illustrate narrative passages such as the burning bush and the crossing of the Red Sea – so fluent knowledge of ancient Greek will not be required.
The first performance is in the Classics Centre in St Giles at 6.30 on Friday May 8, sponsored by the APGRD https://www.apgrd.ox.ac.uk/events. The second is in Iffley Church Hall at 12.30 on Sunday, May 10. The third is in Wolfson College Buttery at 6.00 on Monday, May 11, sponsored by the Ancient World Research Cluster. The performance should last for about 35 minutes, and we will have a brief Q&A afterwards. The APGRD and AWRC are both kindly providing wine.