Synopses & Reviews
This volume contains Ibsen's two most famous plays about women: A Doll's House (1879), his first international success, which "exploded like a bomb into contemporary life," and Hedda Gabler (1890), now one of his most popular plays, but greeted at first with bewilderment and outrage ("The play is simply a bad escape of moral sewage-gas."—Pictorial World). Also included is An Enemy of the People (1882), whose central character was Stanislavsky's favorite role.
"Meyer's translations of Ibsen are a major fact in one's general sense of post-war drama. Their vital pace, their unforced insistence on the poetic center of Ibsen's genius, have beaten academic versions from the field."—George Steiner
"Crisp and cobweb-free, purged of verbal Victoriana."—Kenneth Tynan
Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906) is generally regarded as the father of modern theatre: "His influence on contemporaries and following generations, whether directly or indirectly ... can hardly be overestimated."—John Russell Taylor
Synopsis
This volume contains Ibsen's two most famous and frequently read, studied and performed plays about women: A Doll's House (1879), his first international success, which 'exploded like a bomb into contemporary life', and Hedda Gabler (1890), now one of his most popular plays, but greeted at first with bewilderment and outrage ('The play is simply a bad escape of moral sewage-gas' Pictorial World). Also included is An Enemy of the People (1883), whose central character was the actor Konstantin Stanislavski's favourite role.
Michael Meyer's translations are 'crisp and cobweb-free, purged of verbal Victoriana' (Kenneth Tynan)
About the Author
Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906) was a Norwegian playwright and poet whose realistic, symbolic and often controversial plays revolutionised European theatre. He is widely regarded as the father of modern drama. His acclaimed plays include A Doll's House, Ghosts, Hedda Gabler, An Enemy of the People.