REVIEW: ANTIGONE @ BARONS COURT THEATRE

🎭 Antigone

📍 Barons Court Theatre, 28a Comeragh Road, London, W14 9HR

🗓 Sunday 9th August 2026

⭐️ 2 Stars

CLUNKY CONFRONTATIONS

Last night I headed back to Barons Court Theatre, one of my favourite London pub theatres, for my first Camden Fringe show of the season. Down in that atmospheric basement space, there is usually a real buzz for new or experimental work, so I was looking forward to seeing what this company had in store.

I have to admit that I knew nothing about ANTIGONE going in. For those who are also in the dark, the basic plot follows a young woman named Antigone who faces a massive moral dilemma. Her two brothers have killed each other fighting on opposite sides of a brutal civil war. The new king, Creon, declares that one brother will get a proper burial, while the other - doomed as a traitor - will be left to rot in the street. Antigone decides to defy the state's law to bury her brother out of religious duty, kicking off a tragic battle of wills about authority, family, and justice.

This is an old play - it was written around 441 BCE - and the main problem here I feel lies in the adaptation. The usual runtime is 100 minutes, and this condensed version runs for 60. I'm not sure what's been edited out, but the flow of the story felt very clunky here. I didn't like the way we were told things were going to happen, and that things had happened, but we never actually saw them happen. Relying so heavily on the Greek chorus style of exposition meant we missed out on the real, visceral drama.

A lot of the scenes seemed far too long, with not a lot happening. Instead of building up a sense of urgent, tragic momentum, the pacing frequently ground to a halt during long, repetitive ideological debates.

If I'm honest, I really struggled to concentrate on the story. I just didn't find it engaging, and I was slightly perplexed why the company chose to put on this piece in the first place. They obviously have a passion for their art, but this felt like a bit of a misfire. The creative choices just didn't quite land in a way that made this ancient story feel relevant to a modern fringe audience.

I didn't really feel any emotion coming from the stage, and some lines of dialogue seemed to be rushed. When you are dealing with high-stakes tragedy, you need moments of silence and breath for the grief to land, but here the text was often delivered at a frantic pace that swallowed the emotional impact.

There were some good performances, with the standout for me coming from Patric Schwaab. As Creon he brought a commanding, rigid authority to the stage, successfully capturing the stubborn arrogance of a ruler trapped by his own pride. Even when the script's pacing faltered around him, Schwaab maintained a sharp intensity and a strong stage presence that gave the confrontation scenes some much-needed weight.

Overall, I was unfortunately disappointed with this production. There is a lot of potential in this young cast, but this particular adaptation lacked the clarity and emotional punch needed to make Sophocles truly sing in the basement.

Neill Kovacic-Clarke

All views are my own and I pride myself on being honest, fair, and free from influence. Theatre is subjective and it is important to remember that all views expressed are just those of one reviewer.  

My ticket for this performance of Antigone was gifted by the company, who invited me to watch the show in exchange for my honest review. The fact that my ticket was gifted played no part in the content of my review or the star rating given. 

CAST:

Ioanna Firaku as Antigone; Patric Schwaab as Creon; Marta Kane as Ismene / Eurydice; Brianna Undy as Guard / Teirasias; India Giles as Haemon

RUNNING TIME (approx):

1 hour, with no interval

CONTENT WARNINGS:

Death and murder; Suicide; Abuse; Sexual content

AGE RECOMMENDATION:

14+

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