REVIEW: Hedda Gabler (this is not bohemia) at Golden Goose Theatre 23 January – 1 February

“This production has been put together by some very talented creatives” ★★★ ½ 

In this production, writer Dan Sinclair has transposed Henrik Ibsen's 1891 classic commentary on human complexity, Hedda Gabler, from Norwegian high society to the upper echelons of queerdom.

In this version, Hedda is a former army boy turned frustrated actor, living off his mother's media empire. Lost and disillusioned, he's swirling around in the art world, having recently married Turner prize hopeful, George, and bought an opulent London party-apartment in Marylebone. Into this setup comes the former friends and love triangles that lead ultimately to Hedda's infamous demise. 

The cast, lifted and interpreted from the original, are all self-aware but shameless brats, ambivalently bitter at being frauds in their own working class fantasy. The action and knots of the plot play out broadly as they do in the Ibsen, albeit contorted into new context and circumstance, but the play can be enjoyed by anyone, whether they're familiar with the original or not. It's a great story regardless. 

Despite some wobbly moments, the seven strong cast are richly played, but the strongest is undoubtedly Joe Harrington as Hedda. He emerges with a strangely beguiling and bemusing stiffness. But this offbeat delivery of nonchalance somehow works perfectly, a magnetic and melodramatic caricature of itself, without straying too far into satire of the source material. Some of that is a testament to the excellent direction by Josh Maughan, which is dynamic and engaging. Characters move around the stage with ease and believability, setting them up with farcical precision and manoeuvring them into position for the drama. Their motives and emotions are clear. It is interesting and intelligent without being forced. Almost every beat is considered. And this is supported by flawless and creative lighting and sound (though I’m not certain by whom, as no credit was given – but either way, really nice). The set too, by Tobias Abbot, is thoughtfully detailed and well-conceived, with a really canny interpretation of Chekhov’s gun principle; though one wonders whether total minimalism might have worked nicely for this production as well, giving everything a bit more space to breathe.

Dan Sinclair’s writing stands out here. It’s a star in itself, with some moments of genuine beauty. But while I think the text is exemplary overall, and a really smart adaptation, I found that the collateral equation of disillusionment with decadence slightly muddled its theme. I get what it’s doing – sure, being queer doesn’t exempt you or excuse you from perpetuating the corruption of the elite; it doesn’t mean you’re not part of the problem – but is that relevant? Ibsen’s play is an inquiry into society, and the target of this adaptation's interrogation is supposedly queerness, rather than the bourgeoisie. The problem is: it isn't. We can easily feel sympathy for Hedda's universally relatable indifference in life, but by placing the adaptation in the same esoteric upper echelons of society as the original, which isn't really really what Hedda Gabler is about, it becomes too involved in the subject of class, when what's truly interesting (to me, at least) is the flatlining ambivalence towards social constructs, or in this case queer constructs, and the lengths to which we’ll go to break free of them. Because of this, their high class trappings, the queerness of the characters actually becomes immaterial. It’s a bit like – so what? What point is it making? Are we looking at the queer community, or class inequality, or class inequality in the queer community? Now, I’ll leave that one with you to decide for the subject of a post-show debate. But the fact that this play got me thinking about this topic is only a sign of how much passion there is inside it.

All in all, this production has been put together by some very talented creatives, who have got to be among the best working on the fringe scene. So, if like Hedda, you're looking for passion in your life, pay a visit to the Golden Goose and you'll definitely find plenty of it.

Hedda Gabler (this is not bohemia) by Dan Sinclair 

Based on the play by Henrik Ibsen

Directed by Josh Maughan 

Produced by Springbok Production House 

Box Office: https://www.goldengoosetheatre.co.uk/whatson/hedda-gabler 

Reviewed by Alix Owen