Oh baby, baby, it’s a wild world. At least it is in the 19th century Norwegian home of Hjalmar & Gina Ekdal (Nick Westrate & Melanie Field). The pair live a modest life with a daughter, Hedvig (Maaike Laanstra-Corn) and Hjalmar’s loony father, known as “Old Ekdal” (David Patrick Kelly). Oddly enough, they keep animals in their apartment loft- including a wounded, wild duck they nursed back to health after it was shot.
Director Simon Godwin has assembled a generally strong cast for the Henrik Ibsen play, The Wild Duck which exposes family secrets and explores the lengths and depths of loyalty of kinship. Godwin’s production is currently playing at Brooklyn’s Theater for a New Audience. Next month, it will head to the nation’s capitol where it will be staged at the Shakespeare Theatre Company. David Eldridge translated the work which does a remarkable job of mining the psychological reasoning behind Ibsen’s characters.
Essentially, Ibsen’s tale invites us to question how much truth we want to know about ourselves and those closest to us–and whether or not it is judicious and kind to reveal secrets that could lead to fractious results.
Scenic designer Andrew Boyce has designed a vast, yet warm and inviting set and costume designer Heather C. Freedman has adorned the cast in lovely, period-appropriate costumes.
The Wild Duck is one of Isben’s lesser known and performed works and it is indeed a bizarre tale. Still, this sturdy production raises thoughtful questions about human intention and consequence.
The Wild Duck is now playing through September 28th at Polonsky Shakespeare Center, 262 Ashland Place, Brooklyn, NY 11217. For tickets and information, click here.
Beginning October 18-November 16, it will play at The Shakespeare Theater in Washington DC. For information, click here