Antigone Preview

On Nov. 4-5 and 10-12, the Lee University theatre program will conclude their fall season with their unique production of “Antigone,” catapulting the tragedy into the future with a modern influence but staying true to the plays themes.

Photo by Lee University theatre professor, Catherine Mantooth.

“We wanted to show that this play that's got these universal themes of laws of the state versus laws of faith, has some applicability to today and even to the future,” said Dr. Christine Williams, professor of theatre and director of “Antigone.”

Catherine Mantooth, assistant professor of theatre and scenic and lighting designer of “Antigone,” is creating a newly envisioned world of ancient Greece in the Blackbox Theatre.

“It's certainly more interesting to hypothesize about the future than recreate the past. I had to do a bunch of research on Greek theatres and then edit and streamline those concepts into something new,” Mantooth said.

The cast of “Antigone” is redefined to better represent the themes of the play reflected into the distant future.

Macy Patton, senior theatre major, is starring in the play as Creusa, a female adaptation of King Creon.

In the original play, King Creon is Antigone’s uncle and the main antagonist who imprisons his niece for her defiance against the state. Lee’s new version translates his power-hungry disposition into the context of modern day feminism.

“You see this power, just pretty much deflate in her. She believes [her power] is for the people, but it obviously it's not so. And her biggest flaw is trying to be a good ruler,” Patton said. “She doesn't necessarily like hurting people, but she has to in order to get to this place of full power. So yeah, just speaking to the female power and how it can and can't be abused, is kind of what we're just speaking to in all of this.”

This play has challenged both the on and off stage roles of the theatre.

“It is difficult to portray a character that you don't see all the time. It's hard to truly do that correctly,” said Patton concerning her character, Queen Creusa.

“This is it's not an easy undertaking,” said Williams. “It is a challenge to dig into a text like this. When we first started, it's like, ‘Wait, what are they saying?’ And for them to get past that [adaptation challenge] and to be able to develop characters and have confidence in what they're doing and saying, and perform that, it's just it's wonderful to see.”

Although Lee’s adaptation of the play features a new setting and characters, the play will include the original language of the play.

Student making costumes for the production. Photo by photographer Riley Evans.

“‘Antigone’ is a classic that a lot of people may have read in their humanities classes, for instance, when they did their general education courses. So it's something that we know people might still connect with, even if they don't know a lot of theatre,” said Williams.

This show gives Lee students the ability to work on a show with a rich history and difficult language and bring it to life.

“I'm probably most excited for people, at least, to experience something they've never experienced, this period piece is going to be awesome for people to see,” said Williams.

For more information on the play and to register for tickets, visit here. Tickets are free to all Lee University Students.