Ibsen's Hedda Gabler [Blu-ray]

The Norwegian National Ballet’s Hedda Gabler is Henrik Ibsen’s drama retold in a way you’ve never seen it before. After the premiere in 2017, both Norwegian and international critics praised director Marit Moum Aune’s dance production, set to music by Nils Petter Molvær. Hedda is furious, on the verge of being consumed with disappointment. After a six-month honeymoon in Europe she has returned home to set up home with her husband, Jørgen – but nothing has turned out the way she intended. And when her former lover Eilert Løvborg enters the picture, she reacts in a way that proves perilous for everyone – including herself. Hedda Gabler is one of world theatre’s most well-known characters – an icon created by Henrik Ibsen. Is she cowardly or brave? Spoilt or stuck? Wicked or desperate? Our greatest actors have always found new ways to interpret this psychologically complex role. Now the talented dancers of the Norwegian National Ballet provide their own interpretation, adding another dimension to the drama. While the original play is an intense chamber play in which a lot is left unsaid, Moum Aune paints with a broad brush. Hedda’s world opens up as we delve deeper into her relationships and background. We get to see major scenes that are only hinted at in Ibsen’s text. The dancers in the eight central roles have all contributed to their own choreography, with each movement crucial in the telling of this intense story. Hedda Gabler is the follow-up to Moum Aune’s first success with Ibsen as dance, in which she directed and choreographed Ibsen’s Ghosts together with Cina Espejord. Both productions are among the Norwegian National Ballet’s greatest successes, and are in high demand around the world.