A DOLLS HOUSE, PART 2 by Lucas Hnath (Mirvish/Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre). At the CAA Theatre (651 Yonge). Runs to April 14. $39-$99, stu $25. 416-872-1212. See listing. Rating: NNN
When Nora slammed the door at the end of Henrik Ibsens A Dolls House in 1879, leaving behind her husband, children and bourgeois values, it sent shock waves through the theatre world and the culture at large. People, to paraphrase the famous closing line from another Ibsen play, just didnt do such things.
Well, its 140 years later, and they still dont. And thats partly the point of Lucas Hnaths clever Tony Award-nominated play, with its cheeky blockbuster sequel title.
Fifteen years after her infamous departure, Nora (Deborah Hay) returns through the same door she exited. What she wants will soon become evident, but it has to do with divorce papers, blackmail and other limitations on her hard-earned freedom.
Hnath has lots of fun initially with the premise. One of the first things the prosperous Nora says to maid Anne-Marie (Kate Hennig), for instance, is to ask her to guess how shes been supporting herself all this time. Anne-Maries guesses say a lot about societys limited perceptions of womens roles.
Another amusing element is the mixture of time periods. Teresa Przybylskis costumes are clearly modelled after those from the late 19th century, but some characters especially Anne-Marie let loose a string of very contemporary F-bombs.
But soon enough, the script begins digging into some of the same territory from the earlier play and then some. How important is the institution of marriage? Are people meant to be monogamous? Do children need two parents to raise them?
Director Krista Jackson lays out these questions with clarity on Przybylskis spare, stark set, which includes a strange nest-like sculpture hovering above the playing area, perhaps to remind us of Nora’s flight.
If anything, Hnath could push his play to more interesting places, as seen in an early exchange between Nora and Anne-Marie, where we see the huge class divide between the two.
But the rest of the play which pits Nora against her husband Torvald (Paul Essiembre) and her now adult daughter, Emmy (Bahareh Yaraghi) has a schematic quality, with few surprises. The mother-daughter exchange in particular feels like a missed opportunity although both actors are fine, Hnaths script doesn’t suggest Noras feelings towards this woman who’s inherited a different kind of life.
But theres brilliance in Noras final monologue. Hay, who up till now has been asked to contort her face or body into some weird, clown-like poses she even gets to manspread! finally gets to carry herself more naturally and let us glimpse the womans inner life. She shows us a woman who has had to seek solitude so she could ignore societal voices and hear the one buried inside her.
Its a powerful speech that should resonate with anyone looking for true independence. And its one of the best reasons for watching this well-intentioned, if flawed work.
