Wife, Kiln Theatre ★★★★★
Ibsen's A Doll's House connects four queer stories in Samuel Adamson's bold new play Wife, on at the Kiln Theatre
Wife, Kiln Theatre
Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House is a recurring motif in Wife, a new play which has premiered at Kilburn's Kiln Theatre, exploring society's shifting attitudes to homosexuality. Written by playwright Samuel Adamson (The Light Princess National Theatre, All About My Mother Old Vic), Wife offers a witty, insightful and poignant reflection on our evolving attitudes to same sex relationships by observing four couples spanning four generations, who we meet in 1959, 1988, 2019 and 2042.
This web of queer stories is connected by a production of A Doll's House, and each act is cleverly introduced as a play-within-a-play: the final scene of Ibsen's masterpiece performed in the style of the day.
Nora, the character at the core of Ibsen's classic, walks out on her husband and children. It caused a sensation when it opened in 1879 and all these years later, the act still feels like a damning indictment of marriage itself.
Reflecting on the theme of a wife feeling stifled by her marriage, Adamson begins his play with Daisy, a women torn between a moral obligation to stay with her husband and the deep desire to run away with her lover, Suzannah. Daisy's story is followed by that of family members from three further generations, each of whom must deal with the repercussions of living in a society not entirely accepting of either their own sexuality, or that of those they love.
Director and head of the Kiln Indhu Rubasingham brings her extensive experience and expertise to this world premiere, and the cast is made up of stage regulars including Richard Cant (Hamlet, RSC; My Night with Reg, Donmar Theatre), Olivier-nominee Karen Fishwick (Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour, Duke of York's Theatre) and Joshua James (Lady Windermere's Fan, Vaudeville Theatre).
With its meaty script, intricately woven plots (strongly reminiscent of Michael Cunningham's novel The Hours) and a core theme still very much an issue in today's society – in which homophobia is still rife – Wife is a bold and relevant play housed in a stylish production, and exactly the kind of work we want to see on the London stage today.
This web of queer stories is connected by a production of A Doll's House, and each act is cleverly introduced as a play-within-a-play: the final scene of Ibsen's masterpiece performed in the style of the day.
Nora, the character at the core of Ibsen's classic, walks out on her husband and children. It caused a sensation when it opened in 1879 and all these years later, the act still feels like a damning indictment of marriage itself.
Reflecting on the theme of a wife feeling stifled by her marriage, Adamson begins his play with Daisy, a women torn between a moral obligation to stay with her husband and the deep desire to run away with her lover, Suzannah. Daisy's story is followed by that of family members from three further generations, each of whom must deal with the repercussions of living in a society not entirely accepting of either their own sexuality, or that of those they love.
Director and head of the Kiln Indhu Rubasingham brings her extensive experience and expertise to this world premiere, and the cast is made up of stage regulars including Richard Cant (Hamlet, RSC; My Night with Reg, Donmar Theatre), Olivier-nominee Karen Fishwick (Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour, Duke of York's Theatre) and Joshua James (Lady Windermere's Fan, Vaudeville Theatre).
With its meaty script, intricately woven plots (strongly reminiscent of Michael Cunningham's novel The Hours) and a core theme still very much an issue in today's society – in which homophobia is still rife – Wife is a bold and relevant play housed in a stylish production, and exactly the kind of work we want to see on the London stage today.
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| What | Wife, Kiln Theatre |
| Where | Kiln Theatre, 269 Kilburn High Road, London, NW6 7JR | MAP |
| Nearest tube | Kilburn High Road (overground) |
| When |
30 May 19 – 06 Jul 19, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM |
| Price | £10 - £32.50 |
| Website | Click here for more information and tickets |