HWS News
1 October 2024 • Arts HWS Theatre Opens the Academic Year with Antigone By Annabel Ramsay '25
The 2024-2025 theatre season kicks off with Greek tragedy performed in the Sunken Gardens on the HWS Arts Campus.
The HWS Theatre 2024-2025 season opens with the classical Greek tragedy, Antigone, directed by Professor of Theatre H. May and performed outdoors on Thursday, Oct. 3 - Saturday, Oct. 5 in the Sunken Gardens on the HWS Arts Campus. The location was selected to represent the civic nature and concerns of Greek tragedies, which “were meant to be in the public,” explains May. “Everything takes places outside the palace in front of the citizens.”
Antigone performances will be held at 6 p.m. on Oct. 3-4 and at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. on Oct. 5. A shuttle will run from the Sherrill Hall parking lot 30 and 15 minutes before showtime and at the conclusion of the performance. (Rain location: McDonald Theatre, Gearan Center for the Performing Arts).
Featuring a cast of eight students, two faculty members and an alumna, the show tackles challenging questions such as: What does it mean to rule fairly? To whom do we owe our loyalty? At what cost? What is the relationship between justice and the law? Is it a sign of strength or weakness to allow the advice of others to transform us? To what lengths will people go to justify the death and dishonor of those who have wronged them? Can there be peace in a world where everything is imagined in opposition?
May explains that over the course of their career they have “dealt with a lot of Classical Greek plays through adaptations,” so they were especially “excited for the chance to work with a direct translation.” Directing the performance of Richard Emil Braun’s poetic translation of Sophocles’ Antigone, therefore, was in some ways new. And May also believes that the themes discussed in Antigone, however ancient, are contemporary in the context of the current political moment.
“[I] wanted to deal with some of the major upheavals that we are dealing with right now,” they say, including the current election cycle and “global movements towards authoritarian regimes.” May hopes that watching Antigone will encourage the audience to think about what it means to lead, what happens when we demonize others, and what horrors people are willing to justify in pursuit of their own comfort and security.
The cast includes Annie Barata ’27 as Ismene, Kalila Caringal ’27 as the Sentry and Guard, Tom Fahey ’27 as Haimon, Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science Jonathan Forde as Kreon, Mikayla McDonald, Campbell McCormick, and Nathaniel Phillips as the Chorus, Gabriela Rosa ’23 as Antigone, Grace Snook ’25 as the Messenger, Shia Wade ’25 as Teiresias, and Professor of Dance Cynthia Williams as Eurydice.
Ed Hallborg is the scenic and lighting designer and technical director, Kelly Walker is the sound designer, and Katherine Tarkulich serves as the costume designer. Lilli Dietmann serves as stage manager, Dee Gilman and Helena Van Voorhis ’28 as assistant stage managers, RJ Fangmann and Campbell McCormick as theatre assistants, Ada Bastedo and Caroline Frick as Front-of-House and Publicity Assistants, with additional tech crew from Journey Horeis.
Tickets for all HWS Theatre productions are free (donations accepted) and should be reserved through www.hws.edu/HWSTheatreBoxOffice. Online ticket reservations close two hours before each performance. Remaining tickets will be available at the Box Office, one hour before each performance.
