Politics and Theater: Challenges to Authority

By Bailey Black

Sophocles' Antigone is, first and foremost, a political drama. At it's heart, it depicts a young women, Antigone, standing up to Creon, a king and tyrant. It shows her bravely challenging his authority, and the sacrifices she makes in doing so.

This theme, of challenging authority, is not unique to Antigone. In fact, in the many centuries since Antigone was first perfomed, all the way back in 441 BCE, a multitude of plays have been written and performed around this very same theme. Today, I want to share four examples of plays based upon this theme, all from very different places and eras, to illustrate the intertextual connections between these texts and Antigone.

First, we will travel to 16th century China, and take a look at The Phoenix's Cry (鳴鳳記), a play about loyal government officials standing up to a treacherous minister in the Ming Court.

Next, we will journey across Eurasia to the Iberian Pennisula, and learn about Fuenteovejuna. Written by the Spanish playwright Lope de Vega in the 17th century, this play details the story of a Spanish village — Fuenteovejuna — challenging the authority of a villainous commander.

After that, we will cross the Atlantic and travel 300 years forward in time, to study The Crucible. This play, written by Arthur Miller in the mid-20th century, is about the Salem Witch Trials, as an allegory for McCarthyism in the United States at the time.

Finally, we will travel back across the Atlantic to the Middle East, and take a look at Syrain playwright Sa’dallah Wannous' An Evening’s Entertainment for the Fifth of June. Performed for the first time in 1968, it was written as a challenge to oppression and state censorship.

After learning about all five texts, hopefully you will have a better understanding of some of the stylistic and thematic similarities between these plays despite their being derived from a variety of locations across time and space. I also hope that you gain a greater appreciation for the historically complex intersection of politics and theater. Enjoy my exhibit.