It's ironic that this manufacturing reconceptualises Sophocles’ Antigone in a future dystopia but captures the robust sense of historic ritual, and spectacle, on this climactic Theban play.
Initially staged by the Classical Theatre of Harlem in 2018 and now streamed freed from cost (the movie is edited by Shawn René Graham and Ty Jones), the story of Antigone’s revolt towards King Creon comes with loads of nods to our personal age. A information ticker rolls out the newest on the warring brothers, Eteocles and Polynices, who're useless initially of the play, the latter’s physique ordered to be left untouched by Creon – relatively than be buried – due to his disobedience towards the state.
Directed by Carl Cofield, a lot of the manufacturing’s strengths lie in its give attention to music (beneath Kahlil X Daniel’s course) and choreography (by Tiffany Rea-Fisher), which feels as vital because the textual content right here. There are kinetic projections (by Katherine Freer) that scale the complete breadth of the stage together with showers of sunshine (designed by Alan C Edwards). A robust refrain of singers swap from gospel to Afro-punk, and there's a parallel refrain of dancers.
The script swivels neatly between stately dialogue and modern-day vernacular, which brings amusement. When Creon is within the grip of a disaster over his choice to banish Antigone, he asks a refrain member: “Do you assume I ought to concede?” to which comes the tart reply: “Is Harlem Black?” The sentry (Anthony Vaughn Service provider) who runs on to convey information that Polynices has been given burial libations illicitly, pulls out an bronchial asthma inhaler as he tries to catch his breath, and turns into his personal historic Greek standup act. “Poly-not-so-nices,” he says of Antigone’s useless brother, and appears like a latter-day model of Shakespeare’s idiot. He's massively entertaining, though this comedy undercuts a number of the play’s tragic depth.
This contemporary-ancient hybrid continues in each side of the stagecraft, together with Christopher and Justin Swader’s set design of courtly marble stairs and a shrine to the useless with a bunch of placards. “Black Lives Matter”, reads one. “Justice for Polynices”, reads one other.
Sisters Antigone (Alexandria King) and Ismene (Ava McCoy) are robust and ardent of their choices to obey or disobey the king. Antigone has nice dignity whereas Creon, performed by Ty Jones, is a strongman chief in gold chains and cloak. That the actors play their characters relatively flatly and with little nuance doesn't matter in gentle of the fireworks of musical and visible results. Tiresias’s (Kahlil X Daniel) prophecy of doom brings melodramatic spotlights and floods of pink. It appears to be a part of a brazen intention to entertain, above all else. At solely an hour lengthy, it does simply that.
Post a Comment