CONTEXT

• Ibsen's plays are characterized by a strong sense of realism and naturalism.
• where was the original play first staged?

  Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark on 21st December 1879.
• how was the play first staged?

  Ibsen chose to stage his play in a Stanislavskian manner ('slice of life'), where he wanted to give the characters a sense that the fourth-wall was invisible to them. He also reinforces the sense of ‘real life’ by using everyday objects with significant dramatic tasks.
• what was the audience's reaction to the original play?

  Critics felt that this behaviour set a dangerous example for women . This shocked the 19th century audience, causing this act to become known as ‘the door slam heard around the world’. The play was so controversial that Ibsen was forced to write a second ending which he named “a barbaric outrage” (germany 1880). His work was frowned upon.
• how was the orginal play first staged?

  Using a proscenium arch

  
• when and where is Tanika Gupta's 'a doll's house' set?


  Calcutta, India 1879- during the height of the british empire, ruling 1/4 of the globe, including India
• Tanika Gupta's adaptation of 'a doll's house' occurs over a span of three days (x-mas eve -> boxing day)
• what themes does the play explore?


  gender equality, racial equality, conquest and the ethics of colonisation, adding fascinating questions to Ibsen’s original text.
• when was Tanika Gupta’s adaptation first performed on stage?


  At the Lyric Hammersmith in September 2019
• Directors and designers of this play may use these ideas to encourage audience to acknowledge historical truth as well as to celebrate the diversity of cultures present in todays United Kingdom.