Antigone (Anouilh play)
Encyclopedia
Jean Anouilh
's play Antigone is a tragedy
inspired by Greek mythology
and the play of the same name (Antigone
, by Sophocles
) from the fifth century B.C. In English, it is often distinguished from its antecedent by being pronounced in its original French form, approximately on-tee-GONE.
occupation
. Produced under Nazi censorship
, the play is purposefully ambiguous with regard to the rejection of authority (represented by Antigone
) and the acceptance of it (represented by Creon
). The parallels to the French Resistance
and the Nazi occupation are clear, however.
Theatre Company at the New Theatre
, London, on 10 February 1949. The production was produced
by Laurence Olivier
(who also played the role of Chorus) and had the following cast:
in which both of Antigone's brothers have been killed. Créon, now king, has decreed that while Antigone's brother Etéocles
should be given the usual respectful burial, Polynices
must be left as carrion for scavengers. Antigone chooses to attempt to bury Polynices, and is brought before Créon as a prisoner. Créon attempts to cover up the offense, perhaps because Antigone is engaged to his son Hémon
, but Antigone refuses to be denied the responsibility for her actions, whether they be viewed as guilt or credit. A twist in this version is that Créon is not certain and does not care which body is lying on the pavement, and decided it would be Polynices
. Thus, the noble cause that Antigone champions in Sophocles's drama is undermined here. No longer does Antigone nobly choose death; in Anouilh, she rejects life as desperately meaningless but without affirmatively choosing a noble death. The crux of the play is the lengthy dialogue
between Créon and Antigone concerning the nature of power, fate, and choice, during which Antigone says,
Antigone's actions eventually leave the king with no choice but to execute her, as the incident becomes impossible to cover up.
Aside from the two major speaking roles, also appearing are:
Créon's wife Eurydice
is spoken of and sits on stage knitting for most of the play, but is not a speaking role. She commits suicide at the end of the play, having heard that her son, Hémon, has died.
produced and starred in a 1946 production. Sir Cedric Hardwicke
played the role of King Creon. Also Bertha Belmore
, Wesley Addy
, Ruth Matteson, George Mathews
, and Oliver Cliff, and Marlon Brando
(as the Messenger), Michael Higgins
(The Third Guard). Staged by Cornell's husband Guthrie McClintic
.
In 1974, an American television production of the play, presented on PBS, starred Geneviève Bujold
. It is available on DVD.
Jean Anouilh
Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh was a French dramatist whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1943 play Antigone, an adaptation of Sophocles' Classical drama, that was seen as an attack on Marshal Pétain's...
's play Antigone is a tragedy
Tragedy
Tragedy is a form of art based on human suffering that offers its audience pleasure. While most cultures have developed forms that provoke this paradoxical response, tragedy refers to a specific tradition of drama that has played a unique and important role historically in the self-definition of...
inspired by Greek mythology
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
and the play of the same name (Antigone
Antigone (Sophocles)
Antigone is a tragedy by Sophocles written in or before 442 BC. Chronologically, it is the third of the three Theban plays but was written first...
, by Sophocles
Sophocles
Sophocles is one of three ancient Greek tragedians whose plays have survived. His first plays were written later than those of Aeschylus, and earlier than or contemporary with those of Euripides...
) from the fifth century B.C. In English, it is often distinguished from its antecedent by being pronounced in its original French form, approximately on-tee-GONE.
In print
The play was first published in 1943, during the period when the Nazis occupied France. The character of Antigone took on the role of the French Resistance and Creon took on the role of the Vichy Government, symbolising the power struggle in France at the time. As a result, the play, both in print and performance, placed Anouilh in a dangerous position, though he himself would experience no lasting consequences.Original production
The play was first performed in Paris on February 6, 1944, during the NaziNazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
occupation
Military occupation
Military occupation occurs when the control and authority over a territory passes to a hostile army. The territory then becomes occupied territory.-Military occupation and the laws of war:...
. Produced under Nazi censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
, the play is purposefully ambiguous with regard to the rejection of authority (represented by Antigone
Antigone
In Greek mythology, Antigone is the daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta, Oedipus' mother. The name may be taken to mean "unbending", coming from "anti-" and "-gon / -gony" , but has also been suggested to mean "opposed to motherhood", "in place of a mother", or "anti-generative", based from the root...
) and the acceptance of it (represented by Creon
Creon
Creon is a figure in Greek mythology best known as the ruler of Thebes in the legend of Oedipus. He had two children with his wife, Eurydice: Megareus and Haemon...
). The parallels to the French Resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
and the Nazi occupation are clear, however.
British première
The play received its British première by the Old VicOld Vic
The Old Vic is a theatre located just south-east of Waterloo Station in London on the corner of The Cut and Waterloo Road. Established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, it was taken over by Emma Cons in 1880 when it was known formally as the Royal Victoria Hall. In 1898, a niece of Cons, Lilian...
Theatre Company at the New Theatre
Noël Coward Theatre
The Noël Coward Theatre, formerly known as the Albery Theatre, is a West End theatre on St. Martin's Lane in the City of Westminster. It opened on 12 March 1903 as the New Theatre and was built by Sir Charles Wyndham behind Wyndham's Theatre which was completed in 1899. The building was designed by...
, London, on 10 February 1949. The production was produced
Theatrical producer
A theatrical producer is the person ultimately responsible for overseeing all aspects of mounting a theatre production. The independent producer will usually be the originator and finder of the script and starts the whole process...
by Laurence Olivier
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
(who also played the role of Chorus) and had the following cast:
- Chorus - Laurence OlivierLaurence OlivierLaurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
- Antigone - Vivien LeighVivien LeighVivien Leigh, Lady Olivier was an English actress. She won the Best Actress Academy Award for her portrayal of Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire , a role she also played on stage in London's West End, as well as for her portrayal of the southern belle Scarlett O'Hara, alongside Clark...
- Nurse - Eileen BeldonEileen BeldonEileen Beldon was an English stage and film actress. She had a successful career as a Shakespearean actress as well as in modern repertory theatre.- Biography :...
- Ismene - Meg Maxwell
- Haemon - Dan CunninghamDan CunninghamDan Cunningam was an actor who made few screen appearances but was a noted professional stage actor, performing at Eichstätt. In 1955, he appeared in Laurence Olivier's Richard III.-References:**...
- Creon - George RelphGeorge RelphGeorge Relph was an English actor. He acted in more than a dozen movies, and also many plays. He served in the British Armed Forces in World War I, and was shot in the leg, hindering his return to acting. But Relph eventually got back on stage, and his career continued...
- First Guard (Jonas) - Thomas HeathcoteThomas HeathcoteThomas Heathcote was a British character actor.He was educated at Bradfield College, near Reading in Berkshire, England. His films included A Night to Remember , Village of the Damned , Billy Budd , A Man for All Seasons , Night of the Big Heat and Quatermass and the Pit...
- Second Guard (a Corporal) - Hugh StewartHugh StewartHugh St Clair Stewart MBE was a British film editor and producer whose notable contributions included filming Bergen-Belsen concentration camp following its liberation in April 1945....
- Third Guard - George CooperGeorge A. CooperGeorge A. Cooper is an English actor.One of his best-known roles was as the caretaker Mr. Griffiths in the long-running children's TV series Grange Hill...
- Messenger - Terence MorganTerence MorganTerence Ivor Grant Morgan was an English actor in theatre, cinema and television. He was the nephew of British character actor Verne Morgan...
- Page - Michael Redington
- Eurydice - Helen Beck
Plot
Just as in the myth and original play, the action follows the battle for ThèbesThebes, Greece
Thebes is a city in Greece, situated to the north of the Cithaeron range, which divides Boeotia from Attica, and on the southern edge of the Boeotian plain. It played an important role in Greek myth, as the site of the stories of Cadmus, Oedipus, Dionysus and others...
in which both of Antigone's brothers have been killed. Créon, now king, has decreed that while Antigone's brother Etéocles
Eteocles
In Greek mythology, Eteocles was a king of Thebes, the son of Oedipus and either Jocasta or Euryganeia. The name is from earlier *Etewoklewes , meaning "truly glorious". Tawaglawas is thought to be the Hittite rendition of the name. Oedipus killed his father Laius and married his mother without...
should be given the usual respectful burial, Polynices
Polynices
In Greek mythology, Polynices or Polyneices was the son of Oedipus and Jocasta. His wife was Argea. His father, Oedipus, was discovered to have killed his father and married his mother, and was expelled from Thebes, leaving his sons Eteocles and Polynices to rule...
must be left as carrion for scavengers. Antigone chooses to attempt to bury Polynices, and is brought before Créon as a prisoner. Créon attempts to cover up the offense, perhaps because Antigone is engaged to his son Hémon
Haemon
According to Sophocles' play Antigone, Haemon or Haimon , was the son of Creon and Eurydice.When Oedipus stepped down as King of Thebes, he gave the kingdom to his two sons, Eteocles and Polynices, who both agreed to alternate the throne every year. However, they showed no concern for their...
, but Antigone refuses to be denied the responsibility for her actions, whether they be viewed as guilt or credit. A twist in this version is that Créon is not certain and does not care which body is lying on the pavement, and decided it would be Polynices
Polynices
In Greek mythology, Polynices or Polyneices was the son of Oedipus and Jocasta. His wife was Argea. His father, Oedipus, was discovered to have killed his father and married his mother, and was expelled from Thebes, leaving his sons Eteocles and Polynices to rule...
. Thus, the noble cause that Antigone champions in Sophocles's drama is undermined here. No longer does Antigone nobly choose death; in Anouilh, she rejects life as desperately meaningless but without affirmatively choosing a noble death. The crux of the play is the lengthy dialogue
Dialogue
Dialogue is a literary and theatrical form consisting of a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people....
between Créon and Antigone concerning the nature of power, fate, and choice, during which Antigone says,
"I am disgusted with your happiness! With your life that must go on, come what may. You could say you are all like dogs that lick everything they find. You with your promise of a humdrum happiness--provided a person doesn't ask much of life. I want everything of life, I do; and I want it total, complete: otherwise I reject it! I will not be moderate. I will not be satisfied with the bit of cake offered for being a good little girl. I want to be sure of everything this very day; sure that everything will be as beautiful as when I was a little girl. If not, I want to die!"
Antigone's actions eventually leave the king with no choice but to execute her, as the incident becomes impossible to cover up.
Differences from original Sophocles text
Although Anouilh based his play on the Sophocles play of the same name, there are a few differences. These include the absence of the blind prophet Tiresias (who was central to the Sophocles' "Antigone"), the substitution of the Choral Odes for a single character representing the chorus, and the addition of a nanny that takes care of Oedipus' two daughters. A main difference is in Creon's character; in the original Sophocles, he is adamant in his conviction of Antigone and refuses to yield to any means. But in the Anouilh, his character is much more forgiving; he offers to execute the guards that found Antigone to save her life. In addition, there are deliberately anachronistic references to modern items such as playing cards and sports cars.Aside from the two major speaking roles, also appearing are:
- IsmèneIsmeneIsmene is the name of two women of Greek mythology. The more famous is a daughter and half-sister of Oedipus, daughter and granddaughter of Jocasta, and sister of Antigone, Eteocles, and Polynices. She appears in several plays of Sophocles: at the end of Oedipus the King, in Oedipus at Colonus and...
, Antigone's sister - La Nourrice, Antigone's nursemaid
- Hémon or Haemon, Antigone's betrothed and Créon's son
- Les gardes, Theban royal guards
- Le chœur, a variation of a Greek chorusGreek chorusA Greek chorus is a homogenous, non-individualised group of performers in the plays of classical Greece, who comment with a collective voice on the dramatic action....
- Le messager, a messenger
- Le Clerc, a clerk
Créon's wife Eurydice
Eurydice of Thebes
In Greek mythology, Eurydice was the wife of Creon, a king of Thebes. She appears briefly in Sophocles' Antigone, to kill herself after learning that her son Haemon and his betrothed, Antigone, had both committed suicide, from a messenger. She thrusts a sword into her heart and curses Creon for...
is spoken of and sits on stage knitting for most of the play, but is not a speaking role. She commits suicide at the end of the play, having heard that her son, Hémon, has died.
Adaptations
Actress Katharine CornellKatharine Cornell
Katharine Cornell was an American stage actress, writer, theater owner and producer. She was born to American parents and raised in Buffalo, New York.Cornell is known as the greatest American stage actress of the 20th century...
produced and starred in a 1946 production. Sir Cedric Hardwicke
Cedric Hardwicke
Sir Cedric Webster Hardwicke was a noted English stage and film actor whose career spanned nearly fifty years...
played the role of King Creon. Also Bertha Belmore
Bertha Belmore
-Early career:She was only eight when she made her first appearance on stage. She later toured the coast of America with Sir Philip Ben Greet's Shakespearean Players.-Selected filmography:* Happy * Keep It Quiet...
, Wesley Addy
Wesley Addy
Wesley Addy was an American actor.He played many roles on the Broadway stage, including several Shakespearean ones, usually opposite actor Maurice Evans...
, Ruth Matteson, George Mathews
George Mathews (actor)
George Mathews was an American actor whose career stretched from an uncredited appearance in Stage Door Canteen in 1943 to Going Home in 1971. Burly, heavy-featured, and tall he had an extensive career on stage which began in the early 1930's, when he failed to get a job with the U.S. Mail. He...
, and Oliver Cliff, and Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando, Jr. was an American movie star and political activist. "Unchallenged as the most important actor in modern American Cinema" according to the St...
(as the Messenger), Michael Higgins
Michael Higgins (actor)
Michael Patrick Higgins was an American actor who appeared in film and on stage, and was best known for his role in the original Broadway production of Equus.-Early life:...
(The Third Guard). Staged by Cornell's husband Guthrie McClintic
Guthrie McClintic
Guthrie McClintic was a successful theatre director, film director and producer based in New York. -Life and career:...
.
In 1974, an American television production of the play, presented on PBS, starred Geneviève Bujold
Geneviève Bujold
Geneviève Bujold is a Canadian actress best known for her portrayal of Anne Boleyn in the 1969 film Anne of the Thousand Days, for which she won a Golden Globe Award for best actress and was nominated for an Academy Award....
. It is available on DVD.