CSULB Theatre Arts Interrogates Gender Roles in Modern Adaptation of a Classic

Ingmar Bergman's Nora, adapted and translated by Frederick J. Marker opens April 14 at California State University Long Beach Theatre Arts in the Studio Theatre. This lean and stripped down adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House sheds light on a world where independence is outrageous and feminism is scandalous.

Nora, a loving mother and devoted housewife, relishes in her marriage to her husband Torvald. When an old friend from her past arrives on her doorstep, the threads of her reality begin to come undone and Nora realizes that her past will soon resurface. Has Nora been keeping secrets from her husband, or has she been hiding the truth from herself all along? Nora tells the classic story of A Doll's House in a fast-paced, modernizEd Manner, which includes the infamous 'door slam heard around the world', invoking countless debates and discussions regarding the plights of women since A Doll's House first premiered in 1879.

Henrik Ibsen wrote A Doll's House at a time when the early waves of feminism were beginning to emerge around the world. His plays continue to challenge social conventions and reveal the realities of modern humanity. In addition to A Doll's House, his body of work includes Hedda Gabler, An Enemy of the People, and Peer Gynt. Ingmar Bergman was an acclaimed Swedish director, writer, and producer, whose films include The Seventh Seal and Cries and Whispers. Bergman originally adapted A Doll's House in 1981 as part of a staged trilogy of plays that examines gender roles and the conflicts that arise from them.

Director Christopher Shaw sees Nora as an opportunity to discuss "our middle class values", which he says "are by definition a trap within themselves: 'Get married, have a family, build a successful and lucrative career, reflect ones success and appeal by having an attractive spouse and buying material things'." Over a century since Ibsen's original production of A Doll's House, many would argue that this conversation is far from complete. Shaw asks, "What really has changed? One can see how both sexes are trapped within this ultimately limiting and illusory, false container of gender roles. We have advanced beyond this to some extent, but are women still considered 'less than a man'? Are women still trapped in a 'gender role' and societies expectations of a proper way to live?"

Christopher Shaw trained at North Carolina School of the Arts, Circle in the Square Theatre School, and earned his MFA from CSULB Theatre Arts. He has worked and trained in Mask and Le Coq Techniques in Paris and Padua, Italy, with masters of the respective crafts. He teaches Acting/Scene Study and Acting Techniques classes as adjunct faculty at CSU Long Beach, CSU Fullerton, and AMDA Hollywood, and also teaches a Mask/Acting class as guest faculty with Steppenwolf Theatre West Summer Intensive.

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