“A Doll’s House, Part 2” will make you laugh and break your heart. It’s the story of one woman’s fight for the freedom to pursue her ambitions while shattering her family in the process.
Directed by UF associate professor of theatre Charlie Mitchell, the Hippodrome Theatre will be presenting the play from Jan. 11 to Feb. 3.
Lucas Hnath’s “A Doll’s House, Part 2” is the sequel to Henrik Ibsen’s 1879 three-act play, but audience members don’t need to know anything about the original show to be enthralled by this performance.
Nora Helmer abandoned her husband and kids in “A Doll’s House.” The sequel picks up 15 years later with her standing at the doorstep of the home she left behind.
The play begins with an abrupt knock on a bright red door set in the center of the stage. The loyal family nanny Anne Marie, portrayed by Sara Morsey, answers to find Nora, portrayed by Tess Hogan, standing on the other side.
Dressed head to toe in extravagant green and gold garments, Nora confidently strides into the home where she walked out on her family to achieve her ambitions.
Now an author, Nora has become fabulously wealthy from writing books about women and criticizing the concept of marriage. She claims “marriage makes a person change for the worst.” A bold statement that had some audience members chuckling while others furrow their brows in disbelief.
Nora did not return to make amends. Instead, she’s back because she may be in some legal trouble because Torvald, portrayed by V Craig Heidenreich, did not finalize their divorce.
Heidenreich’s performance of Torvald is filled with hysterical outbursts and resentment towards Nora for leaving without explaining why she was so unhappy with their marriage.
Emmy, Nora’s daughter, is portrayed by UF School of Theatre and Dance student MaRah Williams. Emmy has become a young woman who dreams of being a wife and having a family of her own. She wants the simple life her mother decided to run away from.
Nora and Torvald exchange plenty of swear words during the intense yet impactful final scene of the play. Hogan and Heidenreich (who happen to be married in real life) perfectly depict the harsh realities of divorce. However, you can’t help but wonder if there is still love between the two estranged spouses despite their constant quarreling.
The play proposes tough questions relating to independence, equality and aspirations.
Mitchell said the play is not a true sequel, but a modern riff on “A Doll’s House” that is filled with haunting, devastating lines presented in a comedic way.
When asked what he hopes audience members will get out of the play, he responded with “I guess what you get out of anything, you sort of question your own life,” Mitchell said. “You question your own values, you question your relationships, not in a bad way, but in order to get a fuller sense of who you are.”
"A Doll's House, Part 2" will run at the Hippodrome Theatre from Jan. 11 to Feb. 3.
Nora, portrayed by Tess Hogan, and Torvald, portrayed by V Craig Heidenreich, fight in the intense yet impactful final scene of the play.
