Dr Stockmann, the leading man in Henrik Ibsen‘s morality play An Enemy of the People, will become a leading woman in Rebecca Manson Jones’ new contemporary version of the 1882 classic, which is transplanted to modern Cornwall and interactively tackles the 21st century controversy around climate change.
Sarah Malin – whose television credits include The Knock, Every Silver Lining and the forthcoming What Remains – will play Dr Stockmann, a role tackled in recent years by Ian McKellen, Antony Sher and Greg Hicks in high-profile productions at the National, Sheffield Crucible and the Arcola respectively.
The JustJones& company production, in which audiences are invited to vote on the ending each night, premieres on 25 September 2013 at The Albany in south-east London before touring to Bristol, Devon (Great Torrington) and Cornwall (Mullion, Saltash, Liskeard) and returning for a second London run at the New Diorama Theatre from 5 to 16 November.
This contemporary adaptation of An Enemy of the People is the first UK winner of the Ibsen Scholarship, awarded by the Norwegian Ministry of Culture. It’s set in the heart of a close-knit Cornish coastal community where Dr Stockmann and her brother, the Mayor (played by Rupert Holliday Evans), have founded a Co-Operative Health Spa that has transformed the town’s fortunes. When Stockmann discovers that the health of the planet is threatened by one of their business deals, she assumes everyone will want to put things right.
Ibsen’s classic, which is famed for its final meeting scene of community debate and discord, “the Majority is always wrong”, is here reinterpreted around the subject of climate change, a world problem seen at a local, and deeply personal, level as a sister and brother are divided by their philosophies.
In this bespoke retelling, part of the script has been created in workshops with the involvement of the communities where it will be touring. Local actors will form the chorus at each venue, and audiences will vote on the ethical and practical options portrayed.
An Enemy of the People is adapted and directed by Rebecca Manson Jones, founder and former director of Almeida Projects, designed by Jens Demant Coles. The cast also features Elizabeth Elvin, Samuel Lawrence, Yana Penrose, Matt Ray Brown and Lawrence Stubbings.
