WILD DUCK
H E N R I K I B S E N
A CO-PRODUCTION WITH THE NORWEGIAN IBSEN COMPANY & DEN NATIONALE SCENE, BERGEN
THE WILD DUCK
HENRIK IBSEN
A CO-PRODUCTION WITH THE NORWEGIAN IBSEN COMPANY & DEN NATIONALE SCENE, BERGEN
In The Wild Duck, Ibsen envisions the deadly danger of idealism with the story of a family torn apart by the revelation of a web of secrets. The arrival of an outsider, whose idealistic mission is to reveal all in the name of truth and honesty, has shocking consequences.
Using Ibsen’s original text, this brand new staging, which is performed in Norwegian with English surtitles, has a cast of some of Norway’s most celebrated actors, and is directed by Hedda Award-winner Alan Lucien Øyen.
“When we catch ourselves in the mirror in the morning, we hold our stomach in. When we smile at each other through the window of social media, it’s a fake and filtered smile. We fictionalize and stage our lives for ourselves and one another but are we blind to the truth?” (Alan Lucien Øyen, director)
This production contains themes and scenes that some audience members may find distressing:
References to and depiction of suicide, mentions of death, references to and depiction of animal harm, themes of emotional distress.
AN INTRODUCTION FROM THE DIRECTOR
In the opening scene of Ibsen’s The Wild Duck, the characters play a game of Blind Man’s Buff: blindfolded, a person is spun around and poked by the giggling other players while he’s trying to catch one of them and guess their true identity.
We lie to ourselves.
When we catch ourselves in the mirror in the morning, we hold our stomach in When we smile at each other through the window of social media, it’s a fake and filtered smile We fictionalize and stage our lives for ourselves and one another but are we blind to the truth?
I’m drawn to The Wild Duck because it’s perhaps Ibsen’s most personal and sincere play. The attic where The Wild Duck is played out is not unlike the attic where Ibsen himself played out the fiction of his first doll’s houses while his self-delusional father drank in order to deal with his personal and social failures. I love how willingly Ibsen shares his own feelings of entrapment within the societal expectations and personal disillusionments of his childhood I aim for a simple staging that uses The Wild Duck as a viewfinder to our contemporary lives:
We are living through a time of utter disillusionment where reality and fiction are becoming nearly indistinguishable Through meticulously curated social lives, we live out our own digital self-delusion while ignoring mounting debt and subscribing to unscientific health trends. We find comfort in political echo chambers while denying climate change and holding on to unhealthy relationships and unrealistic career aspirations all the while thinking technology will solve all our problems
The Wild Duck is rich in metaphors that harken back to our time: Hjalmar is a photographer. He spends his day retouching images and tampering with the truth Hidden away in the attic with his little family, his daughter is going blind while his childhood friend insists on removing Hjalmar’s blindfold opening his eyes to the truth of his life with the most tragic outcome.
Perhaps we ’ re all fumbling about in the dark, searching for the truth of our lives? Trying to guess who the people around us truly are. If I were to zoom out, most of my work has revolved around fiction and reality, how they come to interplay with one another, and how the concept of staging plays a vital part in the shaping of our lives: the roles we play on and off the stage I wish to pursue this further and into the photography studio of Hjalmar Ekdal.
When we look at ourselves in the mirror, we know and yet we don’t know Self-delusional, blindfolded, and removed from ourselves, we choose to stay blind to the truths we keep hidden in the attic. But is it time to remove the blindfold? And what happens when the “Blind man ” realizes that the person he has caught in the dark is himself?
CREATIVE TEAM
Director
Alan Lucien Øyen
Set and Sound Design
Alan Lucien Øyen
Lighting Design
Martin Flack
Costume Design
Silje Teland Pedersen
Dramaturg / English Text
Adaptation
Tom Remlov
Produced by The Coronet Theatre, The Norwegian Ibsen Company, Den Nationale SceneBergen
With the Support of The Royal Norwegian Embassy in London, DNB Bank, MARIT
With Special Thanks to Hege Oen, Riksteatret, Det Norske Teatret
Company Stage Manager
Grethe Henden
Deputy Stage Manager
Sandra Tyrhaug
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CAST BIOGRAPHIES
Kåre Conradi
Hjalmar Ekdal
Kåre Conradi is one of Norway’s foremost actors, with a prolific career on stage, screen, and television
Kåre is a permanent actor at the National Theatre of Norway, where he has played in major classical and contemporary dramas. He has won the Wildenvey Award for his interpretations and presentations of literature and poetry. He has played leading men in both Shakespeare and Ibsen productions at home and abroad and is the founder and Artistic Director of the Norwegian Ibsen Company.
The 2023 film “The First Christmas on Cobbler Street”, where Conradi plays Cobbler Andersen, was a critical success and became the highestgrossing film of 2023 in Norway. The Netflix series “Billionaire Island” premiered in September 2024. He is recently shooting a crime series for Netflix on Jo Nesbøs books.
Conradi played the pilot and all the planetfigures in Nick Lloyd Webber’s world premiere of the musical “The Little Prince” at the Lyric Theatre in Belfast He played Edward IV in Trevor Nunns revival of “Wars of the roses ” at Rose Theatre, Kingston
Kåre received the Hedda Award for his portrayal of Richard III at the National Theatre of Norway and has appeared in several series for BBC (“Clique” and “W1A”), ITN (“Plebs”) NBC, (“The Philanthropist”) and HBO (“Industry”).
The Netflix hit series “Norsemen”, where Kåre plays the chieftain Orm, has captivated audiences worldwide and was described by The New York Times as one of the greatest comedies of the past decade.
Kåre has had leading roles in numerous musicals in Norway such as “Singing in the Rain”, “My Fair Lady”, and “Mamma Mia” Kåre has performed at the prestigious Palladium Theatre in London, sung with big band at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and held major concerts across Norway, performing in a variety of formats from duos to jazz quartets, big bands, and military orchestras.
In addition to his stage and screen, Kåre Conradi has very often lent his voice to various international animated films He provided the Norwegian voice for Ernesto de la Cruz in “Coco” (2017)Disney-Pixar’s celebrated film.
In 2023, he dubbed the goat Valentino in the Norwegian version of “Disney’s Wish”, a highly anticipated animated film from Disney His voice also features in the Norwegian version of Hugh Grant’s “Oompa Loompa” in Wonka (2023) among many other movies. He recently finished reading his fifth audiobook in English of the Nobel prize winner Jon Fosse
Svein Harry Hauge Håkon Werle
Svein Harry Hauge is a respected Norwegian actor, known for his versatilit in theatre, film and television. He has performed extensively with leading theatres like Rogaland Teater and Teate Ibsen, earning praise for his roles in Ibse classics such as “A Doll’s House” and “Hedda Gabler”.
He is a one time winner of the Hedda Award for his part as The Nurse in what was hailed as a “Tarantinoesque” performance of Romeo and Juliet Svein Harry Hauge was also nominated for the Hedda Award for his performance as the title role in Henrik Ibsen’s “John Gabriel Borkman”
Hauge’s film credits include “Kings Bay” and “Glass Dolls”, while on television he’s recognized for his performances in “Valkyrien” and “Hos Martin”. Hauge’s ability to tackle both intense dramas and lighter roles has made him a wellregarded figure in Norwegian entertainment, with a career that
Hermine Svortevik Oen
Hedvig Ekdal
He is at present working at Den Nationale Scene in Bergen where he is involved in an award-winning production of “Shockheaded Peter”.
Hermine has been captivating audiences from a young age, stepping onto the stage as soon as she could talk. At just 15, she took on the challenging role of Solveig in Ibsen's "Peer Gynt," showcasing her remarkable talent and dedication to theater.
Now, still in school, she is preparing to perform in "The Wild Duck" as Hedvig, continuing to dive into the complexities of Ibsen's characters She’s also appeared on screen in both movies and tv shows, and being a part of beloved musicals such as “Fiddler on the Roof” & “The Sound of Music”
With dreams of becoming a professional actress, Hermine works hard and is incredibly passionate. Her unique combination of talent, drive, and artistic curiosity continues to position her as a h N
Yvonne Øyen
Gina Ekdal
Yvonne Øyen was educated as an actres with the Academy for dramatic arts in Bergen and received great critical acclaim for her stage debut as Ophelia i Nordland Teater's production of Hamle (2000). She has worked extensively as freelance actress both in Norway and internationally, serving various engagements with both state theaters in Norway as well as within the independent performing arts scene
Over a great number of years Øyen did a series of plays performing multiple characters with director Frode Rasmussen, as her only co-star She has done numerous productions for winter guests since 2007 Most notably the one woman performance Lilly, in which she co-wrote for the 2012 winter guests production Lilly and George.
Øyen won the Los Angeles Movie Award for best supporting actress for her role in the film "DirtyOranges", (2011), and was nominated for the Hedda Award for best supporting actress for her work on multiple roles in the play Coelacanth, (2013).
She performed alongside Liv Ullman in “ The American moth” that opened the Bergen international festival in May 2020 She was last seen in “ Nothing personal “ at The Norwegian opera and
Joachim Rafaelsen
Relling
Joachim Rafaelsen is a talented and versatile Norwegian actor, recogni his work on stage, film, and televisio graduate of the Norwegian Nationa Academy of Theatre, Rafaelsen has established himself as a dynamic performer in a variety of roles He h been a prominent figure at Det Nor Teateret, where his standout performances in productions like D Bowie’s Lazarus, Robert Wilsons E Ivica Buljan’s Productiun of Kraljev garnered critical acclaim.
In film, Rafaelsen starred as Ole in Håkon Håkonsen as a 15-year old, and has also had parts in Hawaii-Oslo, Sønner, Headhunters, Happy Happy and Elling. His television work includes appearances in hit Norwegian series like Exit, Sejer and Valkyrien showcasing his talent for both drama and comedy.
Known for his emotional depth and range, Rafaelsen continues to impress audiences with his commitment to the craft of acting. Whether on stage or screen, he remains a highly respected and sought-after actor in Norwegian entertainment.
Gregers Werle
Christian trained as an actor at the Drama Centre London and soon after had his professional debut in Danny Boyle's feature film Millions. He later moved back to Norway where he shot Academy Award nominee, Joachim Trier's Reprise.
Christian has 20 years of theatre experience, including playing Karl Ove in the critically acclaimed stage adaptation of My Struggle by Karl Ove Knausgård. He has also performed in productions at The Norwegian National Theatre, Den Nationale Scene, Riksteatret, and Oslo Nye Teater Last year he performed as Henrik in Shooting Hedda Gabler at the Rose Theatre, Kingston
His film credits include What Happened to Monday (Netflix), Collide (42), and Allied (Paramount). As well Amundsen and Max Manus, directed by Espen Sandberg and Joachim Rønning, The Trip (Netflix) and The Lørenskog Disappearance (Netflix)
He starred in award-winning TV series Nobel, Ron Howard's Genius, Doctor Who and Succession (HBO). He most recently starred in Sky Original drama Then You Run. Christian will soon be seen in feature film The Right Track (Netflix).
Sørby
Bjørn Skagestad Old Ekdal
Line Verndal graduated from Oslo National Academy of the Arts in 1995 and she has worked at almost all the theaters around Norway. Her stage work has stretched from Shakespeare to Dostoevsky, musicals, comedies and farces.Still, she is mostly known to the Norwegian public for her TV and Film performances which in 2011 gave her the Amanda Award as best female lead for the feature film ”Limbo”.
She has also been nominated three times as female lead at Gullruten for the TV series ”Himmelblå” . Through the years she also has worked as a tv host for shows like ”Lines good helpers” and three seasons of “The Great Norwegian Bake off” You can se her at Netflix in “Home for Christmas”, “A Storm for Christmas” and “Ragnarok”, or on Viaplay in “Táck for senast”, “Jentetur” or “Aber Bergen”
Bjørn Skagestad is a renowned Norwegian actor with a distinguished career in theatre, film, and television. A veteran of the National Theatre, he is acclaimed for his performances in The Wild Duck and Hedda Gabler, among many others, particularly in Ibsen’s works.
Skagestad has also made a mark on Norwegian cinema and television, starring in classic movies like Adjø Solidaritet, Kristin Lavransdatter as well as roles in TV series’ such as Vestavind and Kodenavn Hunter He has been awarded Radioteaterets Blå Fugl for his voice acting, and Per Aabels ærespris for his performance in Anton Chekhov’s The Seagull Skagestad’s career is defined by his versatility and dedication, making him a highly respected figure in Norwegian acting.
THE NORWEGIAN IBSEN COMPANY
The Norwegian Ibsen Company makes a very welcome return to collaborate with The Coronet in a new production of one of Ibsen’s best-known plays, The Wild Duck, with NIC bringing a distinctive and authentic Norwegian perspective on the dramatic and comic genius of Norway’s greatest playwright Previous co-productions include sell-out productions of When We Dead Awaken and The Lady from The Sea received both audience and critical acclaim
Ibsen is the most performed dramatist in the world after William Shakespeare. However Norway did not have a professional Ibsen Company until ten years ago, when one of Norway’s leading actors, Kåre Conradi, founded the Norwegian Ibsen Company.
The company ’ s goal is to communicate Ibsen’s stories with conviction and power, using the country’s leading artists to create a theatrical bridge with the rest of the world and Ibsen’s homeland.
“Working in partnership with The Coronet over the last 7 years has been a privilege that’s enabled us to make work that has revealed an insight and humour of Ibsen to both English and Norwegian audiences We look forward to returning to our UK home for The Wild Duck”
Kåre Conradi, Artistic Director, The Norwegian Ibsen Company
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Photo - Antero Hein
Photo - Antero Hein
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