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IN THE NEWS………………..…………………….………………………Page
ARTS COMMENTARY Victorious ‘Doll’s House, Part 2’ at Florida Rep: Nora returns
Nancy STETSON
nstetson@floridaweekly.com
“It’s just so hard — all of this, being with people,” wails Torvald during “A Doll’s House, Part 2.”
And the audience laughs in recognition and agreement.
Because being with others is difficult.
Marriage is tough. Relationships take work.
Because people are complicated. And so are our interactions.
“A Doll’s House, Part 2,” playing at Florida Repertory Theatre’s ArtStage Studio Theatre, recognizes this.
It also recognizes the need for personal agency and listening to one’s own voice, another difficult thing to do, especially when you’re a woman and there are so many other voices telling you what to do, how to think and who you should be.
Lucas Hnath’s fresh and humorous play starts 15 years after Ibsen’s classic ends. It’s set in Norway, in 1894, but don’t for one minute think this play is stuffy or boring or even gimmicky. It’s not. It’s smart and funny and engaging.
The opening electronic music (sound designer Katie Lowe) and neon lighting (lighting designer Todd O. Wren) let you know that this is something new and contemporary.
You don’t need to know the original to appreciate this play, though Ibsen’s “A Doll’s House” has been requisite reading in some schools.
The classic tells the tale of Nora and Tolvald’s marriage. Torvald treats his wife with condescension as if she’s a doll or a bird in a cage. But Nora is smarter than her husband realizes. She secretly
COURTESY PHOTOS
“A Dolls House, Part 2” plays through March 27 at Florida Rep.
tries to help him, but her efforts are unappreciated and he berates her when her actions come to light. He tells her that they will just have “a marriage of appearances.”
At the end of the play, Nora walks out on him and their children — the most famous door slam in all of theater.
It was an extremely controversial play during its time.
“A Doll’s House, Part 2” takes place 15 years after. It begins with not a door slamming but with a knock on the same door; it is Nora (Suzanne O’Donnell), returning after being gone for 15 years.
Why has she returned? What has she been doing for all those years, when there were very few options available to women then?
The highly confident and self-possessed Nora interacts with the nanny, Anne Marie (Viki Boyle); her husband, Torvald (David Breitbarth); and her daughter, Emmy (Aishling Pembroke), mostly one-on-one. Director Chris Clavelli has Nora and Torvald circling each other onstage like two wrestlers or boxers in a ring. They argue and debate, sometimes briefly addressing the audience as if we’re a jury hearing a case.
Two years ago, the two lead roles were originally played by Florida Rep ensemble members Rachel Burttram and Brendan Powers, husband-and-wife in real life. (Up until recently, their photos were even used in advertising for the show.) But the play was shut down the day after its dress rehearsal, in the early days of the pandemic. A streamed version was made available for a limited time.
But Ms. O’Donnell and Mr. Breitbarth provide an equally strong, though different interpretation, of the play. And the production benefits from now being staged in the studio theater rather than the larger Arcade Theatre stage.
It’s very intimate; you are actually in the room with the characters, mere feet away from the action.
Bert Scott’s set appears almost bigger than the space itself, with an oversized blue wall and wooden doors. It’s interesting to note that even though Torvald isn’t in financial straits, the paintings are missing from the walls and the furniture covered in drop cloths. It’s as if all art and beauty left when Nora did, 15 years ago. It’s a place in a state of perpetual transition.
All four actors in this production are highly entertaining to watch. It is gripping theater, with generous doses of humor.
Ms. O’Donnell gives us an animated and vivacious Nora, a strong, self-possessed woman, though at one point she sits on the floor just like a doll. Mr. Breitbarth’s Torvald is uncertain, confused, at odds with himself and his wife. A scene when his stolid, Scandinavian veneer breaks is especially humorous to watch.
Ms. Boyle, as the much put-upon nanny, provides laughs with her unexpected cursing. And Ms. Pembroke’s Emmy is infuriating; as a 19-year-old, she thinks she has the world all figured out and life will unfold exactly as she expects it will. She is insufferable.
The four present us with differing views of marriage and familial relationships and responsibilities. (Nora questions whether marriage will even exist in 20 or 30 years.)
“A Doll’s House, Part 2” is one of those superlative nights at the theater where everything comes together perfectly: script, directing, casting, acting, music, set, lighting, costumes.
Audiences may have had to wait two years before finally being able to see it in person, but it is well worth the wait and satisfies in every way.
Sequels are rarely as good as the original, but this is definitely an exception. (And to think that it was written over 130 years later, by a different playwright in a different country.)
This incredible production should not be missed. ■
In the KNOW
»When: through March 27 » Where: ArtStage Studio Theatre, 2268 Bay St., downtown Fort Myers » Cost: $59 » Information: 239-332-4488 or www.fl oridarep.org
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DEADLINES/DATES
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WHAT TO DO, WHERE TO GO
March16,2022
— Submit calendar listings and high-resolution photos to events@oridaweekly.com. Email text, jpegs or Word documents are accepted. No pdfs or photos of iers. The deadline for calendar submissions is noon Saturday. Due to the ever-changing status of the pandemic, readers are advised to double-check with venues to ensure that events have not been canceled or rescheduled.
SYMPHONY
Cabaret – By Gulf Coast Symphony at 7:30 p.m. March 2526 at the Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall. 13350 FSW Pkwy., Fort Myers. 239-481-4849 or www.gulfcoastsymphony.org.
American Voices – By the Gulf Coast Chamber Orchestra at 7:30 p.m. March 19 at the Music & Arts Community Center. 13411 Shire Lane, Fort Myers. 239-277-1700 or www.gulfcoastsymphony.org.
THEATER
Hard Travelin’ with Woody – By Players Circle Theater on select dates March 23-April 3. The multimedia show features the words and music of Woody Guthrie. Show times vary. $40/$50. 16554 North Cleveland Ave., North Fort Myers. 239-800-3292 or PlayersCircleTheater.com.
Erma Bombeck: At Wit’s End – By the Centers for the Arts Bonita Springs on select dates March 18-27 at the Center for Performing Arts – Moe Auditorium & Film Center. Show times vary. 10150 Bonita Beach Road. 239-495-8989 or www.artcenterbonita.org.
Avenue Q – By The Laboratory Theater of Florida on select dates through March 29. Show times vary. $37 adults; $15 students. 1634 Woodford Ave., Fort Myers. 239-218-0481 or www.laboratorytheaterorida.com.
The Savannah Sipping Society – At Cultural Park Theater March 24-April 3. 528 Cultural Park Blvd., Cape Coral. 239-772-5862 or culturalparktheater.com.
The Cake – By Theatre Conspiracy at 7:30 p.m. March 17-19 and 24-26, with a 2 p.m. matinee on March 27 at the Alliance for the Arts. $13-$30. 10091 McGregor Blvd., Fort Myers. 239-939-2787 or www.artinlee.org/.
Jesus Christ Superstar: 50th Anniversary Tour – At the Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall through March 20. Show times vary. $53.12-$91.46. 13350 FSW Pkwy., Fort Myers. 239-481-4849 or www.bbmannpah.com.
A Doll’s House, Part 2 – By Florida Repertory Theatre through March 27 in the ArtStage Studio Theatre. $59. 2268 Bay St., Fort Myers. 239-332-4488 or www.oridarep.org.
Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story – By Florida Repertory Theatre March 19-April 11, with half-price previews March 17-18 in the Historic Arcade Theatre. $49. 2268 Bay St., Fort Myers. 239-332-4488 or www.oridarep.org.
Lion King Homeschool – By Fort Myers Theatre March 17-18. Show times vary. $11. 16120 San Carlos Blvd., #5, Fort Myers. 239-323-6570 or ftmyerstheatre.com.
The Michael Buble Experience – By Fort Myers Theatre at 6 p.m. March 19-20. $35. 16120 San Carlos Blvd., #5, Fort Myers. 239-323-6570 or ftmyerstheatre.com.
Escape to Margaritaville – At Broadway Palm Theatre through April 2. 1380 Colonial Blvd., Fort Myers. 239-278-4422 or broadwaypalm.com.
Tale of the Allergist’s Wife – By New Phoenix Theatre on select dates through March 27. $25. 13211 McGregor Blvd., Fort Myers. 239-284-5214 or www.newphoenixtheatrefortmyers.org.
THURSDAY3.17
Grand Dames Tea – Pace Center for Girls, Lee hosts its 14th annual Grande Dames Tea from 1-3 p.m. at Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre. Chaired by Gail Markham, the event includes the honorees sharing their wisdom during a Q&A session led by the young women of pace. $60 per person; $500 per table. 1380 Colonial Blvd., Fort Myers. PaceCenter.org/Locations/Lee/Grande-Dames-Tea or 239-425-2366.
FORT MYERS MAGAZINE – MARCH/APRIL 2022
Backstage Pass: 'A Doll's House Part 2' opens at Florida Rep - ABC7 Southwest Florida (abc-7.com)
NOTABLES IN THE ARTS
March23,2022
Suzanne O’Donnell as Nora in “Doll’s House Part 2” at Florida Rep. PHOTO COURTESY OF TONY FIRRIOLO / ORLANDO SHAKESPEARE
Q. What do you enjoy the most about what you do?
A. Meeting talented artists like Viki, David and Aisling (my castmates).
Q. What would your best friend say is your best quality?
A. I think she would say my sense of humor … even in the darkest times, there is something absurd or ridiculous to laugh about.
Q. When you get time off, what do you like to do in town?
A. I love to eat local! Viki just introduced me to the pancakes at the Oasis restaurant … yum.
Q. What story about you might others nd interesting who don’t know you?
A. In between acting gigs I work as a digital puppeteer. I voice and animate avatars for live simulations, sometimes ve different avatars at a time.
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Q. How did you get into your career? What has been one of your fondest moments in it?
A. I’ve always loved words and stories. I’m not a singer so didn’t participate in high school musicals. I stunned my family by announcing I was going to major in theater in college. I’ve been fortunate to play lots of Shakespeare’s women — Juliet, Hermia, Viola and Kate in “Taming of the Shrew,” to name a few.
Q. What are you reading or watching that you enjoy nowadays?
A. Trying to see all the Oscar-nominated movies.
Q. Favorite ice cream?
A. The vanilla gelato at Belgian Yummies.
Q. What gives you the greatest inspiration?
A. Hearing an audience laugh or cry or respond together. There is something sacred to me about being in a theater and having a shared experience together in real time and feeling that connection.
Q. Who do people tell you that you look like that is famous?
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