Henrik Ibsen’s classic 1888 tale The Lady from the Sea comes back from time to time, though there hasn’t been a major London revival for a fair few years now – well, until this week. Writer and director Simon Stone has brought his updated reworking to the Bridge Theatre with some big name talent – we have Oscar-winning actress Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl) as Ellida, and playing opposite her as husband Edward is Andrew Lincoln (Love Actually). Ellida finds herself in a love triangle when her former flame Finn, played by Brendan Cowell, unexpectedly returns.
There is an awful lot going on in the story: we learn early on that Ellida has recently had a miscarriage, and also that Edward’s previous wife died by suicide. Additionally we’re introduced to Heath (Joe Alwyn), a distant cousin of the family, who has been diagnosed with a terminal illness in his late 20s. So much is happening that at times it’s hard to keep up, though it does make for some gripping, compelling theatre. The acting is strong and really drew us into its world – we felt invested in each story and interested to see how things would turn out.
Set in a lovely house in the Lake District, the family at the centre of the story live a charmed middle-class life, with long conversations in the garden over expensive wines. It’s a much more contemporary setting than Ibsen’s original, with the family members facing modern moral dilemmas: daughter Asa (Gracie Oddie-James) comes under fire for her plan to fund her intended PhD at Harvard by running an OnlyFans account. We learn that Finn got into some trouble as an eco warrior, protesting against a new oil rig.
At its heart, of course, are the same themes that run through many of Ibsen’s plays – the roles of men and women, and specifically the autonomy (or lack thereof) that Ellida has. She may have the illusion of freedom but we see the amount of control that both her current and former lovers exercise over her. We also explore the issues faced by the two daughters and the various power imbalances in society.
We enjoyed the show very much, although we would note that we preferred act one to act two. The first half of the show relies entirely on its gripping narrative – the conversations being had, the ideas being explored – while act two deploys quite an array of impressive set-pieces, which do make for some theatrical “wow” moments, but also become somewhat distracting after a while. It doesn’t spoil the show, but does feel a little unnecessary. On balance, though, it’s still very much an enjoyable evening of theatre, one that presents some compelling ideas in a thought-provoking way.
GAY TIMES gives The Lady from the Sea – 4/5
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