Anna Burnside reviews a ‘compelling version’ of the classic tragedy.
Two sisters, on opposite sides of the cusp of adulthood, are playing a bawdy drinking game. Karaoke is involved. Antigone, the older one, is mercurial and boastful, taunting the younger, wider-eyed Ismene, who hangs on her every word.
Slowly the bones of the story emerge. There are no eligible young men in the bars because they are at war. And with their return comes the sisters’ brother, disgraced as a traitor then punished with death.
Antigone, the impulsive one, wants to bury his body. Ismene, the sensible one, realises this will have devastating consequences.
Writer Lulu Raczka strips Sophocles down to the basics, then locks down the teenage protagonists with a karaoke machine. Under Fin den Hertog’s confident direction, this compelling version springs alive.
Eilidh Loan’s Antigone and Holly Howden Gilchrist’s Ismene are perfectly cast. They thoroughly convince as sisters, with their similar colouring and volatile interactions that can be needling and mocking but have a deep love at their root.
Milla Clarke’s claustrophobic set adds another dimension to the drama. Everything about it is clever, from the theme of the wallpaper to a family shrine surrounded by fairy lights. It looks banal and suburban yet is rich in significance.
The soundscape, overseen by Lewis den Hertog, is spare but used to huge effect.
Up until now, Fin den Hertog has been a promising director. With this Antigone, he has found his voice. Let’s hear more of this.
Antigone performs at the Tron Theatre in Glasgow until 10 October 2026. For further details, go to the company’s website.
Photo by Mihaela Bodlovic.
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