A Doll’s House

Written by Henrik Ibsen, Adapted by Beatrix Christian

Nora Helmer, a childlike wife and mother accustomed to an existence built around her husband Torvald, comes to confront the truth of her marriage, in Henrik Ibsen’s groundbreaking 1879 play.

Ibsen’s greatest play—in this adaptation by Beatrix Christian—has bewitched and divided audiences for more than 100 years with its searing portrayal of gender inequality.

A sparkling dramatic masterpiece that continues to speak powerfully to us more than a century after it first hit the stage, the ACA Company’s new production will make freshly relevant a story that shocked audiences when it was first performed and ushered in a new era of theatre. Marriage, motherhood, money problems, friendship, familial secrets, even white-collar crime are all revealed to be timeless, universal experiences.

Curriculum Links

Advanced Module B: Critical Study of Literature

Dates & Times

Wed 22 May: 7pm
Thu 23 May: 10am & 7pm
Fri 24 May: 10am

Duration

150 minutes (includes 20 minute interval & Live Q&A)

Price

$25 per Student + Booking Fee. $20 per Student for groups over 15. Teachers Free

Transport

Parking available ($10 with ACA validation) and Loading dock Bus drop off area. Site fully accessible.

Cast

Amelia Parsonson (Norah), Harry Reid (Torvald), Barret Griffin (Dr Rank), Abhilash Kaimal (Krogstad), Lucasta Madeleine (Kristine)

Director

Anthony Skuse

Anthony Skuse

Anthony’s directing credits include: Breaking the Code (New Theatre); Lorca’s Yerma (AFTT, Belvoir Upstairs); Alistair McDowall’s Pomona, (KXT, Secret House); Love For Love (ACA);Three Sisters (AFTT, Belvoir Downstairs);Katie Pollock’s Normal (Uncertainty principle); Jen Silverman’s Bones at the Gate (AFTT, Belvoir Downstairs); Crime and Punishment (Secret House); The Street of Crocodiles (AFTT, Belvoir Downstairs); Joanna Erskine’s Air  (Old 505); Chekhov’s Seagull (Secret House); Chekhov’s Play Without a Title (AFTT, Belvoir Downstairs); Simon Stephens’ Birdland (New Theatre); Sarah Kane’s 4.48 Psychosis (Old Fitz); Simon Stephens’ Herons (ISA); Suzie Miller’s Sunset Strip (Uncertainty principle & Griffin, and with Critical Stages National Tour); Melita Rowston’s Between the Streetlight and the Moon (KXT, Mophead Production); Bathsheba Doran’s Mystery of Love and Sex (Darlinghurst Theatre); Charlotte Jones’ Airswimming (The Vaults, London);Tadeusz Słobodzianek’s Our Class (AFTT, Belvoir Downstairs); Nick Enright’s Man With Five Children (Darlinghurst Theatre Company); Katy Warner’s Dropped (Old Fitz); Christopher Harley’s Blood Bank (Ensemble Theatre); Jane Bodie’s Fourplay & Ride (Darlinghurst Theatre Company); José Rivera’s The House of Ramon Iglesia (MopHead Productions); Suzie Miller’s Caress/Ache (Griffin Theatre Company); Jessica Bellamy’s Shabbat Dinner (Rock Surfers, Rocks Pop Up Festival, Griffin Theatre Company); Chekhov’s Platonov (ATYP Selects); Nick Payne’s Constellations (Darlinghurst Theatre Company); Diana Son’s Stop Kiss (Unlikely Productions); Bite Me (ATYP); Simon Stephens’ On the shore of the wide world (Griffin Independent); Amy Hertzog’s 4000 Miles (Under the Wharf, Sydney, La Boite, Brisbane & Critical Stages Regional Tour); Stephens’ Punk Rock (Under the Wharf) three Sydney Theatre Awards including Best Independent Production and Best Direction ; Purcell’s Dioclesian (Pinchgut Opera); Tracy Lett’s Bug, Rivera’s References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot, Marius Von Mayenburg’s The Cold Child, Michael Gow’s Live Acts On Stage (Griffin Independent); Mark Ravenhill’s pool (no water), The Presnyakov Brothers’ Terrorism (Darlinghurst Theatre Sydney)

Anthony is Head of Performance at Actors Centre Australia. He was Associate Lecturer for Performance Practices at NIDA from 2009 to 2012.

Training: Drama Studio Sydney. In 1997 and 2001 he worked with Javanese Movement Practitioner Suprapto Suryodarmo.

A Note From the Artistic Director

“I think I am a human being before anything else. I don’t care what other people say. I don’t care what people write in books. I need to think for myself.”

Who is Nora Helmer – heroic feminist, rabid neurotic, or just a selfish runaway?

With the brisk pace and plotting of a thriller, Ibsen’s classic tale of intrigue, fraud and betrayal still has strong contemporary resonances for today’s audiences, exposing a world where duty, power and hypocrisy rule.

The Helmers are all set to enjoy a new life in a new home. Torvald has been promoted to a senior position at the bank and Nora is delighted. At last, they can put their financial troubles behind them. But their fragile happiness is shattered by the arrival of an unexpected visitor. As the lies that Nora has told, and the risks that she has taken to protect her husband are exposed, they are forced to question just how perfect their marriage really is. Now, it seems, only a miracle will set them free.

“Hugely controversial when it was first performed in 1879, A Doll’s House has lost none of its power as a bold vision of feminist selfhood and rediscovery. I’m excited for audiences to see Anthony Skuse’s new production, which promises to be dynamic and compelling.”

-Adam Cook

Content Warnings

TBC