Y12 English Trip: Henrik Ibsen’s ‘A Doll’s House’- by James S and Meg C
Is love meant to be subject to the markets?”
This question, posed during the production’s climactic confrontation, captures the central concerns of the Almeida Theatre’s contemporary adaptation of “A Doll’s House”.
On the eve of our comparative mock examination on “A Doll’s House” and “Paradise Lost”, the Year 12 English Literature students attended the play’s first major London revival in thirteen years. The trip provided an invaluable opportunity to experience one of our core texts performed live, while also encouraging us to consider how classic works can be reinterpreted for contemporary audiences.
Set in contemporary London and saturated with references to social media, consumerism, and banking culture, Anya Reiss’s adaptation reinterprets Ibsen’s exploration of marriage, gender, and identity through the lens of modern capitalism, revealing how relationships are increasingly shaped by status, image, and material success. Romola Garai’s portrayal of Nora Helmer emphasises both her social awareness and the performative nature of her role within marriage and motherhood, while the set itself – a large, open living space that feels strangely sparse despite its scale – reflects the emotional emptiness beneath the couple’s outwardly successful domestic life. Unlike the original play, set in 19th century Norway, this adaptation places Nora and Torvald within the pressures of contemporary London life, demonstrating how Ibsen’s concerns surrounding identity, autonomy, and societal expectation remain strikingly relevant today.
What perhaps the modern interpretation does well is the reshaping of some of the core themes to societal life that affected both the 19th century Norwegian theatre-goer, and the 21st century socially aware Sixth Former. I am sure all of us could appreciate the exploration of self-sacrifice for the people you love, or the superficial desire to overspend on “retail therapy”.
However, the key word here is some. Some of Ibsen is noted in this production, but most of it is not. One of the things that makes A Doll’s House so captivating is the placement of itself in the time period it is in, and how these key features drive the play. The modern interpretation loses the force of the plot, the tension, the relationships and most importantly Nora. Without what Ibsen called the ‘male law’ – the total detachment of women from their individual personhoods through economics, law and politics – there is no social lens to view the play. Without this precondition to the narrative, Nora’s development collapses and we are watching just another unhappy marriage unfolding.
Another key issue of this contemporary production is the characters. For one, Torvald’s character lost all but one of his patronising, infantilising words of objectifying affection to Nora. This was mostly due to the need for a modern dialogue between two characters, a time when women were not their husband’s property anymore; now, women have an education and the ability to converse with their husband normally. Torvald’s modern character fails to be the ‘bad’ husband throughout the play, presenting a clumsy and awkward jump to Nora’s desire to leave in the denouement (notwithstanding the absurd introduction of World War Three to present Torvald as immoral). Many of his character traits are lost in the modern remaking of the couples’ arguments, presenting a much more basic and common dynamic that undermines Nora’s responses and self realisation later on.
However, this is potentially a little harsh. Other aspects of ‘A Doll’s House’ were cleverly preserved, instead utilising the modern interpretation to shed light on the systemic issues, regarding gender roles and inequality, that can take on many different forms in different ages. Nora’s persistent position on her knees subjugated her physically yet implicitly – a subtle power imbalance that often became sexual. This sexual transaction was common in Ibsen’s time, perhaps demonstrating the need for modern reworkings of classic pieces that continue to be relevant today. A modern production will always, and should always, reinterpret theatre to the needs of the audience watching.