Destiny will be explored at the Durban University of Technology’s Courtyard Theatre this week as Jean Anouilh’s Antigone is staged under the direction of Lloyd O’Connor.
Written in 1942, when Nazi forces occupied France, the story revolves around the conflict between the idealist Antigone and her rigid uncle, Creon, over the proper burial of Antigone’s brother, Polynices.
O’Connor said the play was also interpreted to represent the struggle of the French Resistance movement against the forces of the Vichy government during the Nazi occupation.
While they hadn’t South Africanised the play, it would be accessible for a contemporary audience with colloquial text and strong imagery. “The play looks at leadership in a country and what happens when leadership is questioned. Through a symbolic stage design I’ve included the elements with a central sandpit, lit torches and a cleansing font.”
A total of 15 people are in the cast, which is more than the original character distribution, but O’Connor said he’d done this to give students an opportunity.
“I’ve also got four women playing the chorus which traditionally represented the populous, those most affected… they also represent the four seasons,” he said.
A prescribed book for grades 10 and 11, Antigone is an adaptation of Sophocles’s tragedy of the same title.
• Antigone stages from tomorrow to March 26 at the Courtyard Theatre at Durban University of Technology at 7pm. Entry is R20. For bookings call Lebohang at 031 373 2194.