Ray Mace

BWW Reviews: Stages' DOLLHOUSE - A Suspenseful, Thrilling Ride

Stages Repertory Theatre is presenting a tense and taut production of Rebecca Gilman's DOLLHOUSE. The 2010 play is a modernized retelling of Henrik Ibsen's classic A DOLL'S HOUSE. DOLLHOUSE is set in Chicago, circa 2004. Scandals, like Enron, have rocked American society, and the financial stability of the country is starting to falter. Rebecca Gilman's narrative puts a wealthy couple at the center of the pressure-cooker drama, where Terry keeps close tabs on the families various accounts with hopes to pay off debts and Nora is a shopaholic with a spending addiction. Tension mounts while anxiety gives way to anger and shows for dominance, racing towards Henrik Ibsen's famous door slam. Yet, in DOLLHOUSE, Rebecca Gilman adds a modernizing twist to the classic ending that will give audiences plenty to talk about, but, in my opinion, only serves to solidify how disgusting and unlikeable the two main characters really are.