Binoche appeared on Broadway in the 2000 revival of Betrayal, but is better known for her films, including Chocolat, The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Flight of the Red Balloon and The English Patient, for which she earned the 1997 Oscar as Best Actress in a Supporting Role.
Sophocles' 2400-year-old tragedy will be produced by Barbican and Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg in association with Toneelgroep Amsterdam. Performances are scheduled for Oct. 22-25, 2015, in the Eisenhower Theater. Directed by Ivo van Hove, with a new translation by Anne Carson, the production is described thus: "When her dead brother is decreed a traitor and his body is left unburied beyond the city walls, Antigone refuses to accept this severe punishment. Defying her uncle who governs, she dares to say 'no.' Forging ahead with a funeral on her own, she places personal allegiance before politics, a tenacious act that will trigger a cycle of destruction."
The upcoming Kennedy Center season will also include the continuation of the Barbara Cook Spotlight series of cabaret-style performances in the Terrace Theater. Scheduled for the new season are Tony nominee Terri White Oct. 16, 2015; Tony winner Randy Graff Oct. 30, 2015; Tony nominee Michele Lee Nov. 6, 2015; Tony winner John Lloyd Young Nov. 20, 2015; and Tony winner Frances Ruffelle March 25, 2016.
Kennedy Center audiences will also be treated to touring productions of six award-winning musicals: Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Matilda the Musical, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, Kinky Boots, The Bridges of Madison County and The Phantom of the Opera as well as the Washington National Opera production of Kurt Weill's 1950 musical Lost in the Stars, which merges influences from Broadway and crosses the barrier between opera and musical.
From May 16-June 5, 2016, the Kennedy Center will present Celebrating a Century of Irish Arts and Culture!, which will feature a host of theatrical productions from Ireland, including Pan Pan Theatre's All that Fall—Beckett Radio Play. Additional companies will be announced in the coming months. For complete season details visit Kennedy-center.org.
