Antigone’s Rachel Penny
On Friday February 21st, Sat 22nd
and Sunday February 23rd,
Jenkintown’s Pulley & Buttonhole
Theater Company (PBTC) will be
presenting the classic Greek tragedy,
Antigone. The story of Antigone
opens with the death of two
brothers who fought for the throne
of Thebes. The ruler that inherits
the throne after their deaths,
decrees that only one of the
brothers will be permitted to be
buried honorably. Their sister,
Antigone ignores that decree
promising to bury him anyway
because her understanding is that
the “unwritten and unfailing statues
of heaven” outweigh the laws of
man. The tragedy unfolds with many twists and turns but the central themes
of familial devotion and mankind’s law versus god’s law remain throughout.
In this PBTC production the lead role of Antigone is played by Jenkintown
resident, Rachel Penny. Born in Glenside, Rachel studied at Alvernia
University located in Reading, Pennsylvania. She was the first person to
graduate with a theater degree there. Because the size of the program was
relatively small at Alvernia she got to study all facets of theater production
including costuming so in addition to playing Antigone, she is responsible for
all the costumes in the play. During rehearsals, Rachel shared costume ideas
with the director Bridget Reilly Beauchamp
who welcomed her involvement. It is not at all
uncommon for Pulley & Buttonhole players to
take on a variety of tasks because no one is
dedicated solely to the company itself. Jobs,
families and other responsibilities make it
difficult for any one person to carry the weight.
A PBTC production is truly a group effort.
Rachel describes the costumes as
being “out of time” and “Greek
Adjacent”; as they do not
necessarily adhere to conventions
of Greek attire. Purchases from
the shopping mall, draping fabric,
even some shirts from Renaissance
websites make up the pieces that
will be worn by the actors. The
costume budget comes from
proceeds acquired from previous
productions. Every time a dollar is
spent purchasing tickets for a show,
that money gets rolled into the
production costs of the next one.
A sense of community plays a big role in all of PBTC productions. A lot of
the plays are selected because the theme of community is integral to the plot
but more importantly members of Jenkintown community play an active role
in the productions themselves, even people without theatrical experience.
Mayor Ed Foley and former Borough Council President, Allyson Dobbs
have both performed for the company and PBTC is always looking for fresh
local faces to enliven the stage.
Rachel found PBTC through the Jenkintown Community Alliance website.
Her first production with PBTC was ‘Our Town’ performed at the location
now occupied by Edge Dance Company. PBTC has a tradition of
performing in different, usually empty, spaces. Because they have no
permanent home yet, they like to occupy overlooked gems in the area. In
addition to Our Town, Rachel also performed in Jenkintown the Musical
during last year’s Festival of the Arts. She hopes to direct her first PBTC
production next year. She has her eyes on a whimsical romantic comedy
titled ‘Almost Maine’ which is made up of a dozen two-character vignettes.
Performances of Antigone will be held at Homestead Hall at the Episcopal
Church of Our Saviour on 821 Homestead Road in Jenkintown. There will
be an 8:00PM performance on Friday February 21st and Saturday February
22nd and a 2:00PM performance on Sunday the 23rd. Tickets are $10 for
Students, $20 for Adults. Tickets can be purchased through Brown Paper
Tickets: PBTC.BROWNPAPERTICKETS.COM