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FROM THE DIRECTOR

As I sat watching The Tony Awards last week, Oedipus was one of the plays up for awards with seven nominations and a win for Lesley Manville who took home the Tony for Best Performance by a Leading Actress for her role as Jocasta (Oedipus’ wife and mother).

Throughout the night there was all this reflection around how a play written two and a half thousand years ago is not only still relevant but can still so profoundly speak to the heart of the human condition.

 But that is the beauty of Greek Theatre.

 It is of course where theatre began- the first actor was Thespis who stepped out of the Chorus in 534 BC to speak (thus why actors are referred to as Thespians.) But more than that it explores questions that we still don’t really have the answers to.

 Antigone is the 3rd play in Sophocles Theban Plays – following Oedipus and Opedipus The King which tells the story of the children of Oedipus.

 Oedipus’ sons Polynices and Etocles kill each in Civil War and Creon (their Uncle) claims the thrown and decrees that Etocles is to be buried with all of the rites and honours due to the dead. The other Polynices – must remain unburied.The penalty for disobedience of this law is death.

Antigone defies this law in order to do what she believes is right and pays the ultimate price. King Creon, for his part in placing his law over the laws of the Gods realises too late his mistakes and pays the price for his arrogance.

 Antigone is a clash between individual morality and state authority. A young woman struggles between individual conscience and societal expectations.

It is the beauty of theatre that two and half thousand years later that is still a powerful dilemma.

 I hope you enjoy Antigone

 Cilla