Antigone by Sophocles

 

In recent years, Epidaurus has forged a distinct artistic identity through a series of world premieres, achieved either through co-productions with leading international institutions (Schaubühne, Schauspielhaus Bochum, and Residenztheater), by hosting acclaimed international theatre companies (such as the Comédie-Française under Tiago Rodrigues) or by commissioning prominent European directors to stage classic works of Ancient Drama, such as Frank Castorf’s Medea in 2023 and Timofey Kulyabin’s Iphigenia in Aulis in 2024, both of which featured Greek actors. This year, Ulrich Rasche returns to the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus following his striking 2022 presentation of Aeschylus’ Agamemnon in a co-production with Munich’s Residenztheater. This time, he will helm direction for Sophocles’ Antigone, collaborating with a stellar cast of Greek actors. A co-production between the Athens Epidaurus Festival and the National Theatre of Greece, the performance will be presented in Epidaurus for just three nights only.

For those who witnessed Agamemnon, the ecstatic energy of the performers as they moved ceaselessly atop a vast motorised revolving stage, accompanied by live music, remains indelible. Now, Rasche takes his radical stage language even further, using the unrivalled translation of N. Panagiotopoulos to bring the timeless figure of Antigone to life. The performance will inaugurate the Festival’s programme on the final weekend of June and is poised to leave the most profound artistic imprint on the anniversary year of 2025.