Antigone at Storyhouse
Kristy Stott, Theatre Editor
A fresh new adaptation of the Greek masterpiece Antigone comes to the Storyhouse stage this autumn. In an exciting premiere, Sophocles’ political tragedy has been reimagined for a modern-day audience by Ted Hughes Award-winning poet, Hollie McNish.
Antigone focuses on the story of Oedipus’ daughter, the tragic heroine of the play. Set during the aftermath of a civil war, Oedipus’ sons Eteocles and Polyneices have killed each other in a bitter battle for the throne. Their successor – their callous uncle and tyrant king – rules that while Eteocles is entitled to a burial, Polyneices’ body should be left to rot on the battlefield due to his disloyalty.
Now it falls to Antigone to stand up to her uncle in order to honour her brother and give him the burial he deserves; even if it means breaking the law and risking her own life. Tearing the family and state apart, a personal tragedy of Greek proportions ensues.
Sophocles’ deadly drama is certainly set to captivate.
With a dazzling group of performers, Sophocles’ deadly drama is certainly set to captivate. Fatima Niemogha will make her Storyhouse debut as Antigone, the cast also includes Raffie Julien as Antigone’s sister Ismene and Ken Christiansen as King of Thebes, Kreon. Under Natasha Lambert’s direction, Jim Findley, Bart Lambert, Matt Crosby, Harry Bharat, Rachael Merry and Amy Helena complete the cast of nine.
Although a tragedy of epic proportions, Antigone raises many pertinent themes that remain hugely relevant today. Tackling subjects like gender equality, democracy, immigration and the role that state laws play in our lives. Bold and daring, McNish’s adaptation places the voices of young women and girls front and centre with the Storyhouse youth theatre taking on the role of the Greek chorus.
Antigone raises many themes that remain hugely relevant today.
Most importantly, while McNish’s powerful retelling illuminates the similarities between the ancient Greeks and the society we live in today, audiences do not need any prior knowledge of Greek tragedy, Sophocles or Oedipus to appreciate the themes of the play.
Antigone was due to play as part of the Storyhouse Originals season of work in spring 2020 until the Covid-19 pandemic hit and theatres were forced to close temporarily. Co-produced with TripleC, a Manchester-based disabled-led company that supports access for deaf, disabled and neurodivergent people across the arts, the performance will be fully signed with British Sign Language and incorporate smooth, cinematic style captioning throughout. The performance will also be live-streamed on Storyhouse’s on-demand channel for those who are unable to attend in-person.
