a n t i g o n e

by Mac Wellman

For my senior directing thesis, I chose to mount a production of Mac Wellman’s Antigone. This was a daunting project primarily because the script hardly resembled a traditional adaptation of Antigone. For that matter, it hardly resembled a traditional play at all: it is about seven pages long and is entirely written in block text. There is no differentiation between character, stage directions or dialogue, it is entirely up to interpretation. That’s part of what I loved about the script. I also deeply love Mac Wellman’s philosophy of playwriting: he writes these deliberately beguiling scripts that both charm and entrance an audience, but are so deeply strange and confounding that they demand an audience to actively interpret what is unfolding before them. It requires an activity and an engagement, which we a real precursor to my journey into interactive media.

The text, however was a doozy to interpret. I couldn’t wrap my head around how to break it up or who said what or even how fast or slow certain moments were supposed to be. I felt like I just needed to spread the whole thing out. So I did that. I went through the script and cut out each word and individually glued them onto pages in a way that made sense to my brain.

This process woke up the play in ways I could never have anticipated and from there I began to be filled with images and ideas. I realized the central characters of the play were the three fates who were retelling the story of Antigone. With many references to string and cat’s cradles, I began build a world for the play with the help of some very talented designers.

My initial image research

Lots of strange charts were made. Set designer Dan Geggat, costume designer Zöe Allen and lighting designer Alex DeNevers were instrumental in developing the world of the play.

When we got into rehearsal the actors asked questions that challenged me and brought the play to life in ways that surprised and delighted. It was an experience I’ll never forget- the text was so daunting that I really had to deeply listen to the ideas of the designers and performers I was working with while simultaneously staying true to what I knew about the play. It was a process where everyone contributed essentially the whole became far greater than the sum of the parts. To this day, it holds a special place in my heart.

Here’s how it all turned out!