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Antigone
Presented by: Purely Pensive Productions
Venue: Eltham College of Performing Arts Centre, Research.
Reviewer: Kym Davies
Date Reviewed: 9th November, 2007
I was not really sure what to expect from the Purely Pensive
adaptation of King Oedipus and Antigone, originally crafted by the
Greek master Sophocles in around 400BC, and one of the oldest and
truly universal pieces of theatre ever created. It was certainly
very courageous to take on such a challenge.
Jeremy Ives (Adaptor and Director) has attempted to translate this
ancient story for a modern youth audience, with mixed results.
The first act focused on integrating the story of King Oedipus and
his downfall into the story of the demise of his grown children,
specifically his youngest child, Antigone. Most of the language and
concepts used within the act were of a contemporary nature and
Jeremey introduced language and issues important to young people
today.
In this version, Oedipus cuts his eyes out when he discovers his
beloved wife, Jocasta, has been unfaithful with his rival, Creon,
and his family is shamed. In the original, Creon and Jocasta are
brother and sister, and Jocasta is really Oedipus’ mother and wife
and his children, including Antigone, are a product of incest. This
was an interesting and a brave change to the story base and
underlying tensions.
The second act consisted mainly of the original dialogue from
Oedipus at Colonus and Antigone with some changes and adaptations to
the basic story. Antigone does not die alone but is executed on
Creon’s orders in the final scene. The increased use of the original
text was unexpected after the first act and was a little confusing
style wise.
Clearly Jeremy was attempting to explore light and dark within the
tragedy, to create a world that is relevant to the audience. He
should be congratulated on the attempt, but such a story only works
because of the cathartic effect it can have on the audience. The
tragedy should be intense and any comedy should only come from the
natural ironies of the human condition.
Overall, the story worked well and the focus on the themes of family
and honour were well received by the audience. I would suggest
however with any adaptation, direction and production design that
consistency in choosing a theatrical style and sticking to it is
very important to capture and retain the suspension of disbelief
required from the audience.
Purely Pensive are fairly new on the amateur scene and are presented
as a youth company, I was therefore surprised to find such a wealth
of training, experience and credits listed in the program
biographies. Jeremy was certainly very lucky to have such experience
on hand for his directing debut.
The acting performances varied across the emsemble but included some
amazing individual moments and certainly some impressive potential.
The most outstanding performance of the night must go to the leading
lady, Antigone, played with intensity and sensitivity by the very
talented Erin Brass. Her performance was measured and filled with a
maturity and strength that was quite compelling to watch. Antigone
is a complex character and the centre of the world of the original
play and this adaptation. A woman driven by her conscience and the
love of her family, she is the catalyst of the story and drives the
drama throughout. A big thanks must go to Erin for providing a solid
base for the show to build on, her performance, and in particular
the final speech showed strength and a real humanity.
Other performances of note came from an understated Julian
Campobasso as Colonus and from Portia Chiminello as the pitiful
Phoebe Labdadus. Both supporting roles were played with great focus
and intensity by these two. The two matriarchs of apposing families
also stood out among the cast. Evelyn Vila as the condemned Jocasta,
cut a tragic and cold figure, while Beck Burrows in the role of
Eurydice Argives had a solid and effective presence on stage.
The most effective individual moment came from Shane Sanfilippo as
Oedipus. The scene in which Oedipus confronts his children after he
has cut out his own eyes was a credit to this young actor. This was
a very difficult moment on stage to deliver and Shane’s portrayal
was focused and committed. In fact the whole cast should be
congratulated on dealing with the intense emotion through out the
play with such conviction and believability.
From a production perspective the cast were let down by some
inconsistent direction and style choices and an enthusiastic but
over eager crew. Quite a few cast members could not project past the
front row and unfortunately some dialogue was lost. I loved the idea
of Zeus as a real living statue, but this was incompatible with the
overall style. The scene in which Polynices and Eteocles kill each
other would have worked better using guns instead of swards, as the
use of the gun in the final scene worked extremely well. Again a lot
of the staging choices were conflicting and confusing, even
bordering on farcical.
Jeremy should however be proud of the pace and tension he managed to
build throughout the show and the characterisations he has developed
with the cast. The use of music throughout created a certain mood
and enhanced the concept of family and love lost, while using
projected images of the family album at the start of each act
created a melancholy feeling that transcended into the action.
I enjoyed this show and would encourage any one wanting to attempt
to bring classic theatre like this to a new audience to not hold
back. Well done to Purely Pensive Productions for the attempt and
thanks for giving young thespians the chance to work on such
interesting and innovative material.
Kym has a Bachelor of Arts-Drama from LaTrobe University and since
then has been heavily involved in all facets of theatre, both on and
off stage. Her Directing credits include King Oedipus with
BATS, Popcorn with Dandenong Theatre Company Inc, Lottery
with BATS for the Melbourne Fringe Festival and Short and Sweet
Communities Festival. Her extensive acting credits include Belinda
in Noises Off, Farrah in Popcorn, Truvy in Steel
Magnolias, Mavis in Dimboola, Titania in A Midsummer
Night’s Dream and Susan in Dons Party. Kym’s talents
extend to Production, Set and Costume Design with many credits
including Lottery, Sweeney Todd, Fame, The King and I, Dinkum
Assorted, Gypsy, Hamlet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Steel Magnolias,
Popcorn and Noises Off.
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