Theatregoers at our Whatsonstage.com Outing to Ghosts at the Duchess Theatre on Tuesday (9 March 2010) were treated to an exclusive post-show Q&A with stars Iain Glen (who also directs) and Lesley Sharp.
Glen marks his directorial debut with the play, which is adapted from Ibsen’s 1881 original by Irish playwright Frank McGuinness.
Set in the Norwegian fjordland, the drama takes place in Mrs Alving’s
country house, where she is preparing for the opening of an orphanage,
a memorial to her late husband. Mrs Alving’s son Oswald, an artist,
returns home for the celebrations. A story of love, betrayal and
hypocrisy gradually unfolds as ghosts from the past come back to haunt
the family.
Sharp plays Mrs Alving opposite Glen’s Pastor Manders in a cast that also features Harry Treadaway as Oswald, Malcolm Storry and Jessica Raine. The production is designed by Stephen Brimson Lewis.
Our lively Q&A examined the history of the project, the “emotive” language of McGuinness’ translation, the play’s contemporary resonances and Glen’s Scottish (not Northern Irish!) accent. It was chaired by Whatsonstage.com deputy editor Theo Bosanquet, and can be heard by clicking the ‘play’ button below…