In Julieanne Ehre’s feisty new production of “Antigone,” poor old King Creon doesn’t stand a chance.
In the classic Sophoclean text, the headstrong leader is surrounded by a male chorus of sycophants, all telling him mostly what he wants to hear. And since Sophocles was always the balanced rationalist, this keep-all-sides-happy playwright also gave the feisty king more than a few lines suggesting that a new ruler is perfectly justified in insisting on the rule of law. As we all know, civil liberties are often a victim of wartime.
So as Sophocles told it, Creon was perhaps not entirely at fault for insisting that a traitor to the state deserves no proper burial. And Sophocles’ version of Antigone seemed to like playing the martyr so much that it suggested a certain affectation on the young woman’s part.
Ehre has no time for any of that. Her “Antigone” for greasy joan and company riffs on Brendan Kennelly’s translation. It substitutes passionate force for Sophoclean evenhandedness. And it plays out as a feminist attack on a misguided leader.
This isn’t an entirely original leftist concept, of course. Creon often has been cast as a fascist or an absolutist of some shape.
But in this case, Ehre doesn’t depict a truly eloquent and strong leader so much as an ineloquent and insecure one. Played by the besuited Ed Dzialo, her Creon speaks, too stridently, from a podium emblazoned with the words “Keep Thebes Safe,” clearly intended to remind us of one specific ruler, currently up for re-election.
Ehre stacks the decks against him, not only recasting the chorus as female, but filling her theater with a slew of strong women who eat the King for lunch. Even Paula Stevens’ Ismene is a woman of magnitude.
Purists might argue that this is an imposition on the play, but there’s also a lot to admire here. The choral odes — composed by Andrew Hansen and led by the fine voice of Monet Butler — are nothing short of gorgeous. They have a contemporary vibe, but they also seem appropriate to a mythical world. Similarly, Natsu Onoda’s set is fabulous — the show begins in the lobby of the Loop Theatre and then pulls the audience into a more mythic realm. The result is a very arresting sensory experience. The lead actors, led by Nicole Burgund in the title role, are a youthful but very zesty and earthy crowd. Their work isn’t always crystal clear from a language perspective, but it is perpetually hypnotic.
By using two spaces, Ehre has managed to offer a contemporarily political “Antigone” and, at the same time, a symbolic-mythic one. The result is that neither realm is fully fleshed out. But the show is whip-smart and positively brimming with powerful ideas.
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“Antigone”
When: Through Oct. 10
Where: Loop Theatre, 8 E. Randolph St.
Running time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Tickets: $10-$20 at 312-744-5667
