A new play at London's Arcola Theatre uses stories, poems, letters and texts from Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen's life and work in what is described as a highly physical performance from a young international artist company.
The play is created by Mahdi Yahya who established En'kephale Theatre in early 2010 as a company open for young international artists to collaborate and get a chance to show their work. People collaborating on this project come from America, Australia, England, Wales, Scotland, France, Lebanon and Norway.
Yahya says Henrik Ibsen is sometimes lost between being considered one of the founders of modern theatre and a pioneer in realism; "he takes us on a journey to see the world of the theatre through his eyes. Peer Gynt, one of his most misunderstood works was our vehicle; the play marks the end of Ibsen’s verse dramas and the starting point of our exploration."
"I used stories, poems, letters and texts from Ibsen's life and work, particularly Peer Gynt in a surrealist creation about Ibsen’s endless struggle to find “The Self”. It is a critique on today’s view of Ibsen that often presents him as a boring, old playwright, but he is in actuality the gateway to modern theatre. The play is highly physical and relies on aesthetic and visuals to show the beauty of Ibsen's ideas rather than just talk about them."
'The Emperor Self' is a Lehrstück production that challenges traditional theories of performance and is molded into a tale bursting with spectacle and adventure, from the Norwegian slopes of the troll mountain to the Egyptian Sphinx in the great desert. Henrik Ibsen the poet, playwright, director and painter shares his eternal quest for beauty through his works.
The Emperor Self
Arcola Theatre
27 Arcola Street
London E8 2DJ
24th August - 28th August 2010
Starting time: 8pm
STUDIO 1
Tickets: £10-£16.
Box office 020 7503 1646 or buy online.