Submitted by Harlequin Productions
Harlequin Productions is gearing up to present Henrik Ibsen’s classic drama Hedda Gabler from March 3-26 at the historic State Theater in downtown Olympia. This production is a modern adaptation by director Aaron Lamb of Ibsen’s 1890 play. Aaron previously directed three other shows at Harlequin Productions: Five Women Wearing the Same Dress, Middletown, and Times Stands Still.
I had a chance to speak with Aaron about his upcoming production and what audiences can expect from his modern adaptation of a time-tested masterpiece.
When did you first encounter Hedda Gabler?
I hate to admit it, but I didn’t encounter this play until grad school. We studied Henrik Ibsen’s work, and Hedda Gabler was my favorite along with A Doll’s House. He is one of my absolute favorite playwrights. He was doing something bigger and bolder than anyone else before him. He pioneered the Theatrical Realism movement in which characters behave based on inner motivations as opposed to according to predefined rules of engagement with theater or art. This remains the predominant style of theater today. Ibsen’s characters were and are real people.
How did the decision to adapt this script come about?
The idea came out of a conversation with Harlequin’s Artistic Director, Linda Whitney, about a year ago. We were talking about which version of this play would be best to produce. I wanted to do a modern one and at one point Linda said, “Have you thought about creating your own adaptation?
What was your process in making your adaptation?
I started with the original Danish script and five early translations. I worked through these line by line to come up with something that I thought held true to Ibsen’s intent but with little tweaks so that it would fit modern sensibilities. Of course in the Late Victorian Era when this play was written, there was an immediacy to understanding the play. I wanted the same immediacy with a modern audience.
What’s it like directing a show you adapted?
Richard Eyre, a British director who has a published version of Hedda Gabler once said “The best way to learn about a play is to write it.” What he means isn’t literally to write a whole new play but to sit down with an existing piece and handwrite it out line by line. It’s a rare opportunity to get to work this thoroughly on a piece. In order to keep Ibsen’s original intent, line by line, I had to fully understand his intent and all the nuances therein. This process was extremely helpful. After all, this is a notoriously difficult piece of theater.
What can patrons expect from your modern adaptation?
Audiences will be able to easily understand it. If a patron has seen the play before, they will see things they didn’t notice before. Character motivations that might have been confusing will be clear in this modern adaptation. Part of what I’m trying to do is eliminate the need for any understanding of the social context of Ibsen’s time. With a more traditional performance of this play, audiences usually need to have some knowledge of the political context of the 1890s, as well as the place of women in society at that time. Patrons won’t need this knowledge to understand the piece we’re doing. I hope I’ve accomplished my goal of making this story accessible to more people.
Hedda Gabler runs at Harlequin Productions from March 3-26. Tickets are available now at 360-786-0151 or harlequinproductions.org.
