EVENT DESCRIPTION
Sophocles’ Antigone, penned more than two millennia ago, remains a searing exploration of humanity’s relationship with power. Its themes of resistance, violence against women and the tragic cost of political hubris resonate with piercing relevance in today’s fractured world. What happens when righteousness is silenced and decency forsaken?
Innovative Norwegian director and choreographer Alan Lucien Øyen, founder of winter guests and an associate artist at the Norwegian Opera and Ballet, reimagines this timeless tragedy, stripping the myth to its core. Known for his groundbreaking work with Pina Bausch’s Tanztheater Wuppertal, Øyen blends the visceral poetry of Tanztheater, spoken word and raw emotions, crafting a performance that pulses with urgency and speaks to our tumultuous times.
A stellar ensemble of nine dancers—including Tanztheater artists Nazareth Panadero, Julie Shanahan and Héléna Pikon—brings this vision to life. Øyen’s Antigone deals not only with one woman, but a chorus of identities—a plural portrait of struggle across generations. Each performer embodies a facet of the heroine, placing the essence of womanhood at the heart of the narrative.
Co-produced by winter guests, Fondazione Teatro di Roma, and the Norwegian Opera and Ballet, and premiered in Rome in 2025, Antigone now makes its Asia debut at the HKAF. This is not just dance theatre—it’s a complete sensorial experience, a defiant celebration of our shared humanity, and a call to feel, question and act.
