Shakespeare said we are all “poor players” on a stage. Henrik Ibsen delved deeper into the facades people construct and the roles that they play to appease others.
From April 20-23, East Tennessee State University’s Division of Theatre will bring to life one of the masterworks of early modern drama, Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, a recent triumph on both the Broadway and the London stage. This final production of the 2005-2006 season for the “Theatre Bucs” will turn the elegant Veterans Memorial Theatre into a microscope through which the audience may peruse gender stereotypes and role-playing, courage and fears.
A Doll’s House was an overwhelmingly popular choice in the Division of Theatre because Ibsen is considered to be the “father of modern drama,” said Pat Cronin, director of the Fine and Performing Arts Scholars Program in ETSU’s new Honors College and a theatre faculty member. “The play has the added bonus of being considered the first major work of ‘feminist theatre,'” he said.
It also provides a great opportunity to feature the division’s actors, according to director Bobby Funk. “We chose this play because it has such great roles for our students,” he said. “It also is considered a classic ‘Realistic’ play of the 20th century and its themes are still important today.”
Ibsen wrote the play in 1875, basing it on a woman he had known whom he felt was treated unjustly by his nation’s legal system, Funk said.
“A woman cannot be herself in modern society, with laws made by men and with prosecutors and judges who assess female conduct from a male standpoint,” Ibsen said in 1878.
His words are applicable to the modern era, according to Funk. And, Cronin said, “A Doll’s House” is relevant and inspirational to all audiences regardless of gender, race or background. “All of us must find the person we are and be true to ourselves, regardless of what the world thinks.”
The struggle of the main character, Nora Helmer, represents the struggle of women, then and now, against disrespect and ill treatment, says Aubry Shaver, a senior majoring in speech with a concentration in theatre who plays the role of Nora in the ETSU production.
“Nora is treated like she’s not even human,” Shaver said. “She’s a doll, she’s a bird, she’s a squirrel, she is her husband Torvald’s pet . and there are still women today who are treated that poorly.”
Ibsen relates Nora’s struggle as she is forced to choose between secretly using unethical financial measures and watching her husband die of sickness. She uses these measures to save her husband’s life, but is vilified for doing so when her actions are discovered. The play climaxes as Nora ultimately must take drastic action to salvage her own sense of self-worth.
This dilemma can apply to almost anyone who feels they are not being treated justly, Funk said.
“Finally, at some point, you just have to stand up and make a move toward independence, and that’s what Nora does.”
While there have been many differently styled productions of A Doll’s House, ETSU’s will be performed in a traditional style with period costumes and sets, Cronin said.
“I think the play needs to be done in the period because there are too many references to the 19th century,” Funk said. “But the audience will hear the dialogue, and I think people will still relate and understand what Nora is going through.”
The period of the play actually holds a special significance in the ETSU production, Shaver said: “This year is the 100th anniversary of the Veterans Memorial Theatre, and A Doll’s House would have been one of the first plays performed in this theatre.
So it is, in a sense, a celebration of that anniversary. This production is great fun, a great honor and a great experience.”
Show times are 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, April 20-22, and 2 p.m. Sunday, April 23.
American Sign Language interpretation will be provided during Thursday’s performance. Memorial Theatre is Building 35 on the campus of the James H. Quillen Veterans Affairs Medical Center at Mountain Home.
Admission is $10 for the general public and $5 for ETSU students with valid ID. Saturday is Faculty/Staff Appreciation Day, when ETSU employees with valid ID may be admitted for free.
For reservations, more information, or special assistance for those with disabilities, call the Division of Theatre box office at 439-7576.

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