An analysis of three London productions of 'A Doll's House' by Henrik Ibsen

Abstract

This is an analysis of three major productions of A Doll's House produced in London. The first was in 1889, the second in 1930 and the third in 1973. Each has been staged at a time when the feminist movement was particularly topical and consequently interpretation of the play was to a varying extent prejudiced. The first of these productions coincided with major changes both in the theatre and in the attitudes towards women's role in society. In the closing years of the nineteenth century, J.T. Grein's interest in formaing an independent theatre which would not be subject to the restrictions imposed through censorship by the Lord Chamberlain was reflected in the theatre generally. In the case of the feminist movement, parliament had already passed the married women's property vote and there use pressure to give an even greater degree of independence to women generally. The suffrage movement was in its infancy but nevertheless it was beginning to make its presence felt. Both of these changing factors in society were considerably increased by 1930, when the second production to be discussed in this thesis was staged. Women had finally been given the right to vote (1928) and were now seeking equal pay. Grein's Independent Theatre had been established and later foundered, but in its place came the Cosmopolitan Theatre, and it was this company which produced the 1930 production. Finally, when the production which was to be staged in London in 1973 had its genesis in New York, the American feminist movement, led by Betty Frieden, had become extremely powerful and increasingly influential. Some of its leading exponents were invited guests at the opening performance. The London audience were not as vociferous as the American. Nevertheless, the actress playing Hera, Claire Bloom, was at the heart of discussion. Furthermore, she had played Hera and Hedda Gabler, both plays being produced interchaneably in America, and some of Hedda's abrasive or unemotional personality seems to have influenced her performance as Hera.