A more classics-educated viewer who appreciates this poetry likened these tales to sci-fi or fantasy novels or movies of hyper-imaginary worlds. Sorry but I’m not a fan of those either. I have been unsuccessful in persuading this person to review future Curtainless productions. Are there any other classics lovers out there in GLUT volunteering to review “Antigone” in September? (email me: mailto:jszussman@gmail.com)
As before, I was distracted by the comments in “the chat” that goes along with this Facebook-Live event, but didn’t want to ignore them as Director Dale Wayne Williams invited all viewers to chime in. It’s part of the experience, and does approximate a sense of audience community. Still… feels a little like being in a theatre with people chatting/commenting in the row behind.
Dale also pointed out, in his pre-show comments, that Oedipus at Colonus is the “forgotten middle child” of the Oedipus trilogy. I can see why. It’s about whose city is cursed/blessed by where Oedipus happens to die. Hmmm… not that fancy a plot? More gods/fates/prophecies…. woe is me-ing...
I did appreciate the loving relationship between the doomed Oedipus (Tim Edinger) and his devoted daughters, Antigone (Ellie Wiese) and Ismene (Kate Dickinson). Kameron Going brought his signature gravitas as Theseus, benevolent King of Athens — and Monica Holland was a welcome addition at the end as the messenger describing Oedipus’s demise in an earnest and heartfelt manner.
A notable upgrade in this Zoom Box format was the addition of classic Greek backdrops behind all the actors — except Oedipus, who had a plain, royal purple background. Good age-makeup added a generation to the youthful Joe Clark as Creon. (One improvement would be for Chorus member Kris Vitols to lower his chair or tilt his monitor to avoid the frequent cropping of the top of his head.)
To view this hour and a half long play, look under “More” on Curtainless Theatre’s Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/curtainlesstheatrelansingand choose “videos.” You can play previous Curtainless productions, notably "Oedipus Rex“ and “Prometheus Bound." Support Curtainless Theatre with donations at http://paypal.me/curtainlesstheatre
Part three of the Oedipus Cycle, “Antigone” is planned to air in September; stay tuned for further info. The group hopes to eventually record with actors onstage together as soon as Covid-restrictions allow.