A Masterful production of a Masterpiece of Theatre.
‘All my life I have been a Doll that is taken out to play with and discarded when boredom dictates, I have no voice and I have no opinion, I am never heard, I am what you want me to be… never what I truly am… but what and who am I?’
This famous Henrik Ibsen play was originally written in 1879 and was inspired by real events. In 1878 Ibsen wrote ‘There are two kinds of moral law, two kinds of conscience, one for men and one, quite different, for women. They don’t understand each other; but in practical life, woman is judged by masculine law, as though she weren’t a woman but a man’. In this statement stands the heart of this play. Shocking as it was in its time it still now remains so, although with less poignancy but yet with added elements of idiocy of the restrictive expectations placed on women. A modern audience instantly identifies how far women /have travelled in their strife for individuality and recognition, but the fact that the play still shocks us – we must ask if the journey is over? Ibsen’s classic has been adapted by Chris Bush and much of the fleshy Victorian language has been stripped back to highlight the bones of the story. This makes Sheffield Theatre’s new production much more accessible than some of its predecessors. It does, however, retain its placement in the originally intended era, unlike some productions which modernise the timeframe. Directed by Elin Schofield the play is in safe and skilful hands, as it flows and grows in its intensity and moral judgement of the time. With Design by Chiara Stephenson, the set is both beautifully effective and symbolic, as house we see on stage; that also confines and restricts its inhabitants; is opened and we observe the onstage interior of the Doll’s house.
A Doll’s House has six characters, and we discover each is linked inexplicably to the next. Nora Helmer outwardly looks happy and contented with two children and the wife to hard working Torvald who has finally secured a new job as a Bank Manager. The maid Anna, we discover, comes from the same background as Nora, who was also in an orphanage as a child. Dr Rank, a family friend and long-time admirer of Nora, has an inherited death sentence hung over his head, due to his father’s wayward and amorous life style. Christina, Nora’s childhood friend from the orphanage arrives unexpectedly after the death of her husband leaves her once again penniless, she is looking for work and hopes Nora can convince Torvald to give her a job. Amongst this, Nora has a secret, an indiscretion that could ruin the outwardly idyllic family life and more importantly, to society of the time, her husband’s standing in the community. Her indiscretion? – she borrowed money to pay for a medically needed trip to Europe for her husband to convalesce, after one assumes, he has suffered a mental breakdown. To save her husband’s sanity, Nora acquires the money by forging her father’s signature as guarantor, but only because he is on his deathbed, and she doesn’t want to cause him any unnecessary stress. This play is full of irony and none more so than the situation of the financier Krogstad; who is Christina’s former love; who is also fighting to regain his own social standing. He is revealed to have fallen from societal grace for the same indiscretion. As we see the layers peeled away from the initial bliss of Nora’s childlike innocence and flippant life – through the control from the masculine figures around her who idolise her as an empty headed plaything – we arrive at the powerful final interaction as Nora realises her marriage is a sham and most importantly she has a voice as she has the revelation that she has opinions of her own.
The cast of this production are wonderful, and Siena Kelly as Nora delivers on all levels, with a rollercoaster in the extremes from the playful childlike character to her final emotive scene which has the audience in the palm of her hand, you could hear a pin drop in the theatre. Tom Glenister portrays a Victorian gentleman and husband perfectly, as a master and provider and eventually as a confused and bewildered male. Aaron Anthony as Dr Rank adds many of the comedic moments to the production but also some of its darkest and heart wrenching predicaments. His performance is flawless. Eleanor Sutton gives a strong performance as Christina and Eben Figueiredo as the troubled Krogstad is dynamic in role. The maid Anna is also the pianist on the show and plays live on set, a very talented young actress.
In my opinion, Sheffield Theatre’s production of A Doll’s House has just the right amount of adaptation from the original to hit the audience of today. It is a powerful piece of theatre that can still shock. Nora ends by having no idea what is right and what is wrong, she has natural feelings on one hand and belief in authority on the other which leads her to total distraction. Ibsen asks, ‘How can a woman be herself in an exclusively male society, with laws made by men and with the prosecutors and judges who assess feminine conduct from a masculine standpoint’.
I was impressed and was very moved by this successful production. A Doll’s House is at the Sheffield Crucible Theatre until Saturday 12th October, and I urge you to go see this wonderful production – it is a Sheffield Theatres Production to rival any that have gone before it.
Reviewer: Tracey Bell
Reviewed: 26th September 2024
North West End UK Rating: