This semester the department of fine and performing arts produced Jean Anouih’s adaptation of Sophocles’ “Antigone.” Running from April 19 to 22 in the Romita Auditorium, the play was just over an hour long. The play began with the sounds of an ominous cello filling the auditorium with an ill-fated unease. Freshman Brynna Pawlows took the form of the Chorus, introducing the audience to the tragedy they would soon witness. She comfortably walked directly in front of the seats and explained the plot as if she was having a casual conversation. As Pawlows introduced each character, the actors broke their frozen stances and subtly changed their positions, as if saying “here” to a roll call. In order to give a brief overview on what happened prior to the play’s action, Pawlows used charts and cartoons, creating laughs from the audience. Despite the inauspicious nature of the play, there were plenty of moments when dialogue, acting and proper timing brought chuckles from the crowd. The side comments and casual interaction between the three guards, played by Steven Burth, Pieter Maddens and Giancarlo Simonetti, created realistic scenes as they delivered their dialogue perfectly. Senior Greg Morra as Creon demanded the audience’s attention with his powerful voice and emotional appeals to his niece Antigone, played by senior Maureen McNulty. Though Morra’s bluish-gray hair hinted at Stanley Tucci’s Caesar Flickerman, the comedic notion vanished as Morra made great use of the stage and transformed effortlessly into an authoritative figure. As the female lead, McNulty had the drama, the passion and the right amount of defiance to portray Antigone. The shift between her ferocity and gentle passion for Ismene and Haemon, played by freshman Amy Wert and junior Thomas Ford respectively, only seemed natural. For the majority of the play, Antigone is adamant about giving her brother, Polynices, a proper burial, casting aside the wishes of Ismene and her nurse, played by a gentle and loving sophomore Eva Renski. She defies society and her own family, even though they are not a “particularly affectionate family,” in order to give her brother his final rites. The audience roots for her fearless heart, as Antigone clearly has the “pride of Oedipus.” When she learns the truth about her brother from Creon, the audience expects Antigone to retract her statement and choose to live. She, however, remains steadfast in her decision, placing her family above the law. Though the overall production of the play was well done, the venue was an awkward setting. With the backstage covered by tapestries on either side, it made exits less dramatic since the actors had to carefully fit through the slits in the cloth. The rigid seating of the auditorium and the lack of control over lighting on stage all seemed unnatural for the play. As the Chorus foretells, the play has tragic consequences: Antigone hangs herself; Haemon, looking at the love he can never attain, stabs himself; and Eurydice, played by freshman Alex Arso, finishes her knitting and cuts her throat. Despite the bleak ending, the play leaves the audience with thoughts of gender roles, power struggles within families, humanity and the universal divide between parents and their children. The concepts of inevitable tragedy, human forces and innate morality were well represented by all of the actors, who brought the tragic “Antigone,” originally written more than 2,400 years ago, to life. Iona’s production of “Antigone” was directed by Thomas Donnarum.