Written by Emily Perkins
Adapted from Henrik Ibsen’s 1879 work
Director: Katherine McRae
Venue: Clarence St Theatre
On: 14 September 2019
First presented in Oslo in 1879, A Doll’s House premiered in New Zealand at Dunedin’s Princess Theatre in 1890. Emily Perkins’ clever adaption 129 years later includes nods to modern concerns such as climate change and sustainable living.
Nora’s existence begins to unravel at Christmas as lies are exposed and she scrambles to keep her seemingly charmed life in check. Sophie Hambleton was brilliant in the role capturing Nora’s joyfulness, fear and despair convincingly.
Simon Leary was sensational as husband Theo. From his subtle nuances to emotional intensity, he was thoroughly compelling and an absolute delight to watch.
Peter McCauley (Gerry), Kali Kopae (Christine), and Francis Biggs (Aidan) were perfectly cast. They delivered their roles skilfully, and each was completely relatable.
Child actor Sophie Fulton was confident in her portrayal as Bee. Ollie Shallcrass of Tamahere Model School had only rehearsed for two days, but his command of the role of Billy was such that you would be forgiven for thinking he had been on tour with the rest of the cast for the entire season.
Katherine McRae’s own onstage experience meant that as a director she utilised the stage and set fully. The play was perfectly paced, and scene changes were effortless.
A highlight of the evening was a Q&A at the conclusion of the performance hosted by Alex Lodge. It was exceedingly generous of the cast who given so much during the play to then continue for another half an hour answering Lodge’s thoughtful questions with good humour and fascinating insights.
Tonight’s show in Hamilton marked the end of the current tour, but I sincerely hope the production can embark on another season as Perkin’s adaption with McRae’s direction and Ian Harman’s extraordinary set and costume design deserves to be seen throughout New Zealand.
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