The story of Antigone as written by Grecian playwright Sophocles in his fifth-century BC Theban play is galling. For her determination to secure a respectable burial for her brother in defiance of King Creon, Antigone is sentenced to pay the ultimate price – her life.

In an unflinching examination of human solidarity and heroism, Playwright Elena Carapetis’s adaptation examines the parallels with ancient rituals that have sadly not been confined to the annals of history. The ludicrous assertions within the societal inequalities past and present are challenged as the characters of Antigone and Creon take on instantly recognisable forms in our contemporary landscape.

Mark Saturno and Kathryn Adams in game show scene in Antigone, May 2022. Photo © Matt Byrne

Mark Saturno and Kathryn Adams in game show scene in Antigone, May 2022. Photo © Matt Byrne

Antigone, in this 21st century imagining, first appears care of the black and white Greek language film Antigoni – the stage-bound production, here bound on a stage. The lengthy exchange between Irene Papas as Antigone and Maro Kodou as Ismene sets the scene and leaves no clues as to how the tale will be...