TG STAN
Antwerp, Belgium
2 ANTIGONE
| text | Jean Cocteau / Jean Anouilh |
| by and with | Natali Broods, Jolente De Keersmaeker, Tine Embrechts, Tiago Rodrigues, Frank Vercruyssen |
| scene and light design | Thomas Walgrave |
| costumes | An D'Huys |
| special thanks to | Laurence d’Hondt |
| production | tg STAN |
| coproduction | Théâtre Garonne, Festival d’Automne, Théâtre de la Bastille |
Performance time: 2 hours 15 minutes. No intermission.
Antigone who provokes the gods, defies death and questions the established order? Or Antigone who rejects the normal rules of society and refuses to make any concessions in the name of life? Cocteau/Anouilh, 1922/1944, two different versions of the myth. One is short, powerful and in the heroic style of the ancient tragedy; the other is more human, smacks of disillusionment and betrays a desperate existentialism.
In Les Antigones/2 Antigone Tg STAN juxtaposes the two versions: the possibilities contained in a script, the chance aspects of a choice and the way history misleads mankind.
They may get straight to the point and pay great attention to their material, but they nevertheless bring an inspiring tale about following one’s heart. When intelligence and humour become partners in culture, great things are afoot. This production provides food for thought about the repertoire, brings familiar yet refreshing material and is thought out to the very last detail.
The five actors manage to make an asset of their accents, as every syllable changes into a musical note. They play Cocteau and – even more so – Anouilh without any preconceptions, as if these were virgin texts, untouched, eager to acquire a sense; they reject all ostentation, pretence and embellishments. No director, no set, no costumes. No draperies. Everything becomes artless, unsteady, tenuous. Everything begins anew, everything becomes true. By breaking down the mechanisms of theatrical illusion they bring unheard-of accents to the tragedy. The actor reveals himself in the front line, and if he's slightly overweight, if he's a little too thin, if he limps because of an accident, that is all we see. He strips himself of all ornaments, he steps down from his ancient pedestal. He is disarmed, he is free.
The conventions of tragedy and of the popular press come together to stir up emotions. But this is only made possible by the actors and their effortless vitality, always ready to forge ahead. In front of a long table that will later become a stage, the actress steps forward with a slight smile and announces what will take place tonight. There is no suspense. Everyone knows the story. And then, while the light draws golden streaks on the ground, unfolds the inexorable destiny of a stubborn young girl in a miniskirt and trainers, with a blond braid and athletic legs. All the actors are true to themselves, truly magnificent, while carrying us to the height of emotion with a purity never achieved before. A tragedy was rarely of such beauty.
Tg STAN
Founded in 1989, tg STAN theatre company assembled young actors who graduated from the Academy of Theatre Arts in Antwerp. Jolente de Keersmaeker, Damiaan De Schrijver, Frank Vercruyssen and Sara De Roo. Their intention was to impose themselves as a group of actors with their inspirations, skills and weaknesses. And to start exploring together the deconstruction of theatrical illusion, to devote themselves to pure acting as well as to a strong engagement towards the dramatic persona and the story they’re being told.
Resolutely dedicated to the actor, refusing dogmatism and classifications - STAN means S(top) (T)hinking A(bout) (N)ames – and they organised a very eclectic repertoire in which comedies of the salon, by Oscar Wilde and George Bernard Shaw meet Büchner's intimate diary and notes written by American activists. Bernhard follows Henrik Ibsen or Peter Handke. The refusal of dogmatism can be read from engaged collaborations with groups such as Dito'Dito and Rosas, and with artists like Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, Luk Perceval or Julien Schoenaerts. Regardless of the fact that they don’t work with directors, the strength of their performances springs from that very particularity and the fascinating pleasure they get from acting. The strategy of this group is to act both in English and in French, before different types of audiences.
In English they have performed The Answering Machine, Earnest (Oscar Wilde), One 2 Life (adapted from different texts by George L. Jackson), The Last Ones (Maxim Gorky), Yesterday we will (Jolente De Keersmaeker/Willy Thomas), Blackhole/Cancer (Gerardjan Rijnders), Point Blank (adapted from Chekhov’s Platonov), Quartett (Heiner Müller), La Carta (Javier Tomeo), and 2 Antigone they perform both in French and in English.
