As it prepares to move to a newly renovated cultural arts complex in Glendale this fall, the Antaeus Theatre Company announces its final production in the North Hollywood space it has called home since 2007: A fully partner cast production of Hedda Gabler, Henrik Ibsen's classic drama of passion and desperation, begins previews on May 26 with press openings (one for each cast) set for June 2 and June 3. Steven Robman directs.
One of literature's most complex and compelling anti-heroines, the beautiful and intelligent Hedda yearns to escape her marriage to a man she finds numbingly dull. Suffocated by the expectations and limitations of bourgeois society, she tries to fulfill her aimless desires by manipulating the fates of those around her - no matter how dark the outcome. First produced in 1891, Ibsen's masterpiece shocked European society; now, 125 years later, it continues to challenge audiences.
"I don't think the problems dramatized in Hedda Gabler derive only from the conventions of the Victorian era," says Robman. "To emphasize this, we've shifted the period forward some 30 years, from the early 1890s to the early 1920s - not a time frame most people would associate with restrictive or limited behavior. And that's just my point. What keeps a person from being able to shape or control his or her life? A good question - and the reason why I want to direct this play."
Antaeus will present the play in a version by Australian playwright
Andrew Upton because, according to Robman, "it has a very 'un-Victorian' feel. The dialogue could easily be contemporary." Upton's adaptation premiered in 2004 at the
Sydney Theatre Company with his wife,
Cate Blanchett, in the title role and was seen on Broadway in 2006.
In the Antaeus tradition known as "partner casting,"
Nike Doukas and Jaimi Paige will share the title role, with JD Cullum and
Adrian LaTourelle partnering as Hedda's husband, Jørgen Tesman;
Daniel Blinkoff and
Ned Mochel as Tesman's rival - and Hedda's former lover - Ejlert Lövborg;
Kwana Martinez and
Ann Noble as Hedda's former school friend, Thea;
Tony Amendola and
James Sutorius as Judge Brack;
Mimi Cozzens and
Lynn Milgrim as Aunt Julle; and
Elizabeth Dennehy and Karianne Flaathen as Berte.
Scenic design for Hedda Gabler is by Se Hyun Oh; lighting design is by
Leigh Allen; costume design is by Leah Piehl; sound design is by
Cricket S. Myers; the assistant director is Ricka Fisher; and the production stage manager is Kristin Weber.
Antaeus is a cooperative theater ensemble founded to empower the actor and to bring classical theater to Southern California. The company exists to create a family of artists and audiences and is dedicated to exploring stories with enduring themes. Taking their company name from the Titan who gained strength by touching the Earth, Antaeus members - many of whom are familiar to film and television audiences - regain their creative strength by returning to the wellspring of their craft: live theater. Members of the company span a wide range of age, ethnicity and experience; they have performed on Broadway, at major regional theaters across the country, in film, television and on local stages, and are the recipients of numerous accolades and awards. Audiences, who never see an understudy due to Antaeus' trademark "partner casting," frequently return to see the same play in the hands of an equally excellent but very different set of actors.
Antaeus continues to raise funds to complete the conversion of a Glendale storefront into the cultural arts center that will house its theater productions and other programming beginning this fall. For more information and to make a donation, go to
antaeus.org/support-us/play-on/.
Performances of Hedda Gabler take place June 2 through July 17 on Thursdays and Fridays at 8 pm; Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.; and Sundays at 2 p.m. (no matinee performance on Saturday, June 4). Talkbacks are scheduled following select Thursday performances: call or visit the website for details. Six preview performances take place May 26 through June 1. Tickets are $30 on Thursdays and Fridays (except June 2 and June 3 which are $34 and include a post-performance reception), and $34 on Saturdays and Sundays. Preview tickets are priced at $15. The Antaeus Theatre Company is located at 5112 Lankershim Blvd in North Hollywood, CA 91601. Parking is available for $8 in the lot at 5125 Lankershim Blvd. (west side of the street), just south of Magnolia. The theater is air-conditioned and wheelchair accessible. For reservations and information, call 818-506-1983 or go to
www.antaeus.org.
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