City College brings Ibsen’s ‘Hedda’ to life
By Marcus Rodriguez
Staff Writer
A sneak preview of the City College production, “Hedda Gabler,” the 19th-century play written by Henrik Ibsen, directed by Gloria Weinstock, was performed on Nov. 12 at the Diego Rivera Theater.
The play could be considered a comedy of manners with a quiet, tragic undertone.
The story concerns Hedda Gabler, played with passion and perfect restraint by Whitney Gafford. Gabler has just married and is settling into a quiet, uneventful life with her new husband George Tesman, played with manic energy by Will Chen.
Even though Gabler’s last name is now Tesman, the title of the play still uses her maiden name, which suggests she is not happy in her new role as Tesman’s wife.
Without giving too much away for those who haven’t seen it, let’s just say she makes a few decisions that change her life and the lives of those around her forever.
I sat in on the dress rehearsal, so there were still a few small kinks in the performance. If the actors didn’t have their movements right, Weinstock interrupted with, “Stop! Too soon. Go back and do it again.” It was nice to see the nuts and bolts of a play, especially since it was on the way to becoming a consummate, well-crafted production.
The performance of Patrick Barresi was excellent. He played Ejlert Løvborg, the tortured, self-destructive writer and secret love interest of Hedda. Barresi lent gravity and conviction to the role of a man slowly unraveling with the help of his own demons and vices. As he sank into despair and alcoholism, I found myself sympathizing with Løvborg.
This play worked so well because it kept very close to the original work, with a lean and simple stage production that allowed your mind to get lost in the story.
The play built a large amount of tension as the characters, while mannered and polite in their speech and interactions, moved closer to their own demise and ruin. Weinstock’s stage direction helped the cast with calmness and restraint as the tragic events began to unfold.
There were were a few other hiccups. A line or two was forgotten, but considering this was a dress rehearsal, I definitely look forward to seeing the finished product.
Actual performances began on Nov. 13 in the Diego Rivera Theatre.