UCLA Egyptology lecture and Long Beach Opera performance to focus on the life and times of Pharaoh Akhnaten

As if on cue to the wave of passion and revolution that has swept Egypt in the past month with the overthrow of a regime, comes a collaboration between the Long Beach Opera and UCLA Egyptology examining the controversial and revolutionary ancient pharaoh Akhnaten.

On Saturday, professors and doctoral students will hold a lecture in Lenart Auditorium that attempts to demystify Pharaoh Akhnaten, who ruled during the 14th century BC. The lecture leads up to the opening of “Akhnaten,” a composition by Philip Glass that will be performed by the Long Beach Opera.

“Akhnaten” is the third in Glass’ trilogy of men who changed the world in which they live, along with Gandhi and Einstein.

The opera follows the journey of Akhnaten, who attempts to completely convert polytheistic Egypt into a monotheistic society, arguably the first in history. It recounts the rise and fall of a ruler viewed by some as heretic and others heroic as he attempted to materialize his grand vision of a new religious and cultural order, and Egypt’s return to polytheism after his reign.

“Saying that Akhnaten is the reason monotheism exists is a bit hard to prove, but that is the perspective Glass is really approaching it from,” said Anne Austin, who will speak at the lecture on Akhnaten and who is receiving her doctorate in archaeology, with a focus in Egypt and human skeletal remains. “(Glass is) saying look at this incredible jump, and we know in the future people start looking at religion as monotheistic, and this might be the reason for that.”

Attempting to enhance the audience’s knowledge of the history in the opera, the Long Beach Opera collaborated with Professor Willeke Wendrich to host the lectures at UCLA.

The lecture will be led by Wendrich, along with Kathlyn Cooney, a professor of Egyptian art and architecture, and doctoral students Austin and Eric Wells. It will be broken into segments: “Who was Akhnaten?,” “Discovering Akhnaten,” “Akhnaten’s Religion,” and “Art and Akhnaten.”

“I think one of the most compelling things about Akhnaten is that it’s hard to tell if he was incredibly committed or simply crazy,” Cooney said. “What he did was unprecedented and hated by his people. To pull that off, you must be brave but also a bit crazy to go against your own people.”

Cooney said it’s compelling to learn what kind of a person Akhnaten was, to go out on such a limb, making him a mysterious and interesting historical figure to study.

Wells, who concentrates on nonelite expression of religious devotion, will lead the lecture focusing of Akhnaten and religion. Having generally lectured to audiences fairly well-educated on the topic, Wells expressed enthusiasm to have the opportunity to speak to a crowd whose knowledge of Egypt may not reach further than pyramids and mummies.

“It will be fun seeing what their first impressions and thoughts on the subject are,” Wells said. “This is one of the most dated topics to Egyptologists. They have debates over the art and religion of the time. Was (Akhnaten) a prophet, or was this a political power grab, or was it an artistic, poetic expression to the divine? It will be interesting how the audience interprets it.”

Austin said the lectures and the opera are an opportunity to get to the truth of who Akhnaten was, aside from all the myths that have historically brought him infamy. During his reign, the pharaoh made leaps in changing not only religion in Egypt, but also art in the region as well.

“This is looking at a person who has an inner vision that is truly extraordinary and truly different than anything we have seen before, and looking at the effects that can have on religion and culture,” Austin said.