The recently formed Theatre of the People's inaugural season has opened with "Henrik Ibsen Abridged: A One-Act Double Feature of Daring Deeds" in innovative productions. "A Dolls House" directed by co-founder Hannah Moss had Keetin Marchi as the brave Norah living in a pink Barbie Doll house. "An Enemy of the people" directed by co-founder David Nosko came with a noisy claque of audience members who hooted and hollered at Erica Cunningham as the courageous Doctor Stockman in the town's public meetings.
Both plays have been edited down to play in just under an hour. The work has been done with great care and skill. I had no trouble following the ins and outs of the plot for "A Dolls House," but the quick wrap up of the dilemma that Ibsen leaves the Doctor with in "An Enemy of the People" did send me back to the book shelf for a quick confirmation.
The charm of these productions is in the energy and the sheer delight that they take in making theatre. The addition of Maggie Bontrager and Paige Talbert as a pair of high-fiving French maids for "A Dolls House" and their give and take on the usual patter about the exits and the cells phones was a nice touch. The whole Barbie Doll pink house complete with the tea pot from "Beauty and the Beast" was lovely. The much used town bath in "An Enemy of the People" was a child's wading pool complete with bath tub ducks and in honor of the town's resource the mayor wore a pair of duck slippers. During the whole progression of the story, artist Christina Vanko covered the back wall of the set with a mural and then as the story wound to its close, erased it.
This is just the first of the Theatre of the People's Two Plays for the Price of One series. In February they promise Ladies of Lust with Wilde's "Salome" and Strindberg's "Miss Julie." In April we can look forward to Beauty Betrayed with Euripides "Medea" and "The Trojan Women."
The theatre of the People's Henrik Ibsen Revival continues in the Rose Firebay of the John Waldron Arts Center with performances Thursday and Friday at eight and Saturday at two and eight.