ANTIGONE. Bristol to 30 March.

Bristol

ANTIGONE
by Sophocles, version by Brendan Kennelly

Bristol Old Vic To 30 March 2002
Mon-Wed 7.30 Thur-Sat 8pm Mats Thur + Sat 2.30. No show Good Friday (29).
Runs 1hr 30min No interval

TICKERTS 0117 987 7877
Review Timothy Ramsden 15 March

Intelligent, if initially dry-seeming, Greek tragedy has strong individual and Chorus performances.As a former Playschool presenter and the Old Vic's Education Director, Heather Williams presumably knows about direct communication with limited means.

Yet her production of Sophocles' conflict of moral and political imperatives goes for designer broke, with a moon-disk suspended in front of an abstract, epic backcloth and a Chorus varying around a dozen (depending who's needed at any moment for duty as an individual character) in white, full-face masks.

At first this seems set to make for worthily old-fashioned Greek Tragedy production, all design and direction chic giving a cosy feel of Great Art across the aeons.

But it doesn't take long to notice the intensity in the sisters' opening argument, played like all the dialogue, straight out front to the audience. Antigone's passion shows a mind barricaded against argument. Robson's reasonable Ismene can make no impact, though her moral sense is no less than her sister's.

And Creon seems a prisoner of his public stance. Gwilym's voice softens as the Chorus suggests he need not kill both sisters; he's genuinely grateful to the Chorus for pointing this out. As he sways vocally and suffers the consequence of his judgement, Creon becomes the tragic centre.

For Antigone is soon dead, and with Robson cast also as Creon's wife; the tragedy focuses on the consequences of Creon's judgement more than Antigone's imperative to bury the warring brother her uncle, seeking political stability, had arbitrarily ruled a traitor.

Williams uses her education experience with the Chorus, formed from the theatre's Young Company – youth theatre members bound for Higher Education. Their discipline is total, flowing like a viscous liquid round the stage, moving in and out of the foreground.

Forever facing out front, their masks, with variously contorted mouths, express an astonishing range of anxiety, pain and puzzlement. This formality is humanised by a series of individual touches, faces held at questioning angles, looks and grabs at each other for security and an active role in the debate over royal actions.

Intensified by Tim Streader's intense, tightly focused lighting and Paddy Cuneen's music, this Antigone soon bursts through the Art barrier into gripping life.

Antigone: Rebecca Callard
Ismene/Eurydice: Samantha Robson
Creon: Robert Gwilym
Guard/Chorus: Peter Macqueen
Haemon/Chorus: Adam Croasdell
Tiresias/Chorus: Kevin Walton
Messanger/Chorus: Bill Ward
Attendant/Chorus: Jem Wall
Chorus (Young Company): Richard Allen, Emily Bowker, Nathan Cable, Annette Chown, Rosie Giarratana, Chris Holliday, Antony Jenkins, Tom Pullen, Sarah Wyatt
Boy: Edward Blancke/Maurice Palmer

Director: Heather Williams
Designer: Katie Sykes
Lighting: Tim Streader
Sound: Jason Barnes
Composer/Musical Director: Paddy Cuneen
Choreographer: Michelle Gaskell

2002-03-17 11:31:55