Week 18: Classwork

Wednesday

On Wednesday, we split into small groups so that we could go through each section in more detail and it would also be easier as we would only have to focus on two or three people at a time and also it would make the pace of the work quicker.

I spent majority of the lesson going over the Ismene scene again as we had discussed some problems that needed to be fixed like the positioning of the chair, as it needed to be in a certain place on a certain line, and we also discussed the showing of the sisterly relationship that they have.

We discussed the fact that we thought they were very close and we wanted to make sure that the audience got a sense of the relaxed atmosphere and the genuine comfort that the two feel in each other's company.

We thought that combining the movement of the chairs with trying to created an easy atmosphere could be done after the Nurse has run out to get the two a drink. We thought that Antigone could see the unease that Ismene felt towards the dirt and so Antigone would grab the chair and wipe the dirt off of it as though she was a servant to Ismene, who would give her a look and play along by doing small bow, the two would then proceed to laugh at each other and sat down together with Ismene on the chair and Antigone on the floor leaning on her leg.

There is a section of this conversation where Antigone starts to talk about the two of them when they were little and how much more pretty Ismene was and how miserable it used to make her because even from a little age, Antigone knew that Ismene was prettier and always would be. This allows the tow to reminisce about their younger years and shows the pranks that Antigone would pull on Ismene. For example, Antigone says "...and once I tied you to a tree and cut off all your hair." To which Antigone finds fun but Ismene just responds with a small nod and a disappointed smile.

As the scene continues we tried to identify the point in which the two stop enjoying each other's company and the point when the conversation becomes less of a reminisce and more of an accusation/argument. For me this point is when Ismene clearly states that "we can't do it" which completely changes Antigone's view towards Ismene as she thought that this was the least they could both do to say goodbye to their brother but not Ismene has refused to do it and so the real pressure has now been placed on Antigone as she realizes that she is now isolated from everyone else.