2004

Cover of the first edition
Author	Seamus Heaney
Genre	Tragedy
Publisher	Faber and Faber
Publication date	2004

When was the original Antigone written?

441 BC

Antigone (/ænˈtɪɡəni/ ann-TIG-ə-nee; Ancient Greek: Ἀντιγόνη) is an Athenian tragedy written by Sophocles in (or before) 441 BC and it was first performed at the Festival of Dionysus of the same year.

Is burial at Thebes a translation?

The Burial at Thebes, by Nobel Prize-winner Seamus Heaney, is a new verse translation of Sophocles’ great classical tragedy Antigone.

Why did Sophocles write Antigone?

Sophocles wrote Antigone because the story was already a popular legend in Greek mythology and he saw dramatic and moral potential in retelling it as a tragic play. Sophocles uses Antigone to make a case against tyranny, thus supporting the democratic values of his home, Athens.

What happens in The Burial at Thebes?

The play tells how Antigone, the daughter of Oedipus, gives her brother, the traitor Polyneices, a form of ritual burial (she scatters his corpse with dust) against the explicit instructions of her uncle, King Creon, and the advice of her sister, Ismene, even though she knows that the consequence will be her death.

What does the name Antigone mean?

She is a sister of Polynices, Eteocles, and Ismene. The meaning of the name is, as in the case of the masculine equivalent Antigonus, “worthy of one’s parents” or “in place of one’s parents”.

Is Antigone a real story?

In ancient Greece, Antigone is mostly related to the myth that was told by the Ancient Greek playwright Sophocles, although there is reference to a different Antigone in the ancient Greek World. Antigone was the daughter of King Oedipus of Thebes and Jocasta.

Who wrote Burial of Thebes?

The Burial at Thebes: A version of Sophocles’ Antigone is a play by Irish Nobel laureate Seamus Heaney, based on the fifth century BC tragedy Antigone by Sophocles.

How long is Burial at Thebes?

about 70 minutes

At about 70 minutes, “The Burial at Thebes” barrels toward its conclusion with a brutal certainty. It’s always exciting to listen to, even when there’s not much to look at.

Who is the lead in Antigone?

Antigone is the play’s tragic heroine. In the first moments of the play, Antigone is opposed to her radiant sister Ismene.

When and where was Antigone written?

Antigone was the third play in the Oedipus trilogy written by the great Greek playwright Sophocles (c. 496 – c. 406 BCE). Produced around 441 BCE and receiving first prize at the Dionysia festival, the tragedy was actually written long before both Oedipus the King and Oedipus at Colonus.

Who wrote Antigone and when?

“Antigone” is a tragedy by the ancient Greek playwright Sophocles, written around 442 BCE. Although it was written before Sophocles’ other two Theban plays, chronologically it comes after the stories in “Oedipus the King” and “Oedipus at Colonus”, and it picks up where Aeschylus’ play “Seven Against Thebes” ends.

What time period is Antigone set in?

441 B.C.

The play is set in Thebes, a powerful city-state north of Athens. Although the play itself was written in 441 B.C., the legend goes back to the foundations of Hellenic culture, many centuries before Sophocles’ time. All the scenes take place in front of the royal palace at Thebes.