Antigone - National Theatre

Antigone, the infamous Greek tragedy written by Sophocles, tells the story of a defiant woman who goes against the state to fight for what she believes in. This defiant woman is played by Jodie Whittaker in Don Taylor's new version of Sophocles' masterpiece which also stars Christopher Eccleston as Creon, the ruler of Thebes.
Directed by Polly Findlay, this modern day adaptation has been located to a bleak office reminiscent of war bunkers - the state's headquarters. The set is vast, desks adorn the stage and the chorus acting as Creon's advisers watch a small screen bewildered and shocked at what they are witnessing until at last a victory is announced. This is a terrific start, setting a dark tone and fast pace to what quickly becomes a disappointing production. As with most productions in the Olivier, the drum revolve is brought into play as the set revolves to reveal a wall at which Antigone and her sister Ismene meet. Annabel Scholey brings a brilliant degree of terror to the troubled Ismene, whilst Jodie Whittaker's Antigone (complete with a jarring Manchester accent) is weak and not strong-willed enough for us to believe that she is strong enough to go against the state in a society in which women are subservient. I can't help but feel that Annabel Scholey would have made a more convincing and engaging Antigone.
Christopher Eccleston's Creon is, like Whittaker's Antigone, not strong enough for the production and for the audience to believe that he is such a dictatorial ruler. With these rather weak performances, the production as a whole lacks drama which is essential for a Greek tragedy centred around the themes of death and the Gods. The only injection of drama comes from the entry of Tiresias in the latter part of the production, however, the electronic sound scape which accompanies his entrance is not fitting with the production as a whole. Jamie Ballad's performance of the blind and disfigured prophet is blistering and thrilling, combining a twisted wit and gruesome frustration.
As a whole, Polly Findlay's production just falls short of the mark in terms of dramatic intensity and performances, Saying this, the production is not overly weak and some of the performances are intense leaving some lingering sense of tragedy. I am going to give this production a low three stars, just clawing out of a high two stars.   

Detroit - National Theatre

Detroit is the hilarious, shocking and hard-hitting new play from Lisa D'Amour. Set in an unknown 'first-ring' suburb, D'Amour's play deals with the relationships and dynamics between two couples - Ben and Mary, and Kenny and Sharon. Austin Pendleton directs this terrific ensemble, creating an exciting and current piece of theatre.
The performances in this production are terrific and tragically comic; Justine Mitchell's Mary is dry and filled with bubbling emotions whilst Will Adamsdale plays Kenny as a frantic and dangerous character who really sets this play alight, igniting a visceral energy which ripples throughout the audience. Clare Dunne as Sharon, in the latter part of the one act drama, also offers a highly kinetic performance which is thrilling to watch. There are some truly comic moments in this production, one featuring a lot of alcohol and loud music, which really highlights the tragedy of the chracters' lives; Pendleton and D'Amour give the audience some striking contrasts which are beautiful, but at the same time are also disturbing as we see these characters' lives spiral out of control in such a hectic and care-free manner. The staging is also inventive and possesses a voyeuristic quality which adds to the intimacy of the production. 
The last fifteen minutes of this intoxicating production, however, fails to ignite the same energy that the play previously possessed and feels ever so slightly dull. I found myself wondering why we needed the inclusion of a fifth character to spell out what had just happened to the audience as if we hadn't just seen the play. It added nothing and took away some of the surreal magic of the previous scene.
Despite the disappointing ending, this is great piece of theatre which I loved and would highly recommend. I would have been tempted to give Detroit a full five stars, however because of the ending I am going to have to knock it down a star to four.