The Liar

The Peer Gynt Project continues with The Liar. Adapted and directed by Michael Fields, based on Henrik Ibsen’s Peer Gynt. Parental discretion advised.

The Dell’Arte Company and the acclaimed Jomfru Ane Teatret of Denmark have embarked on an exciting international collaboration to create a new work inspired by the Ibsen classic Peer Gynt. Visually stunning, combining mask performance traditions from around the world with live music and the trademark physical performance styles of both ensembles, this collaboration brings a unique vision to this powerfully resonant work of theatre on the 100th anniversary of Ibsen’s death. Welcome to a wake for Peer Gynt. The Bastard, the now grown child of Peer, is our guide for this event that encapsulates one of theatre’s most intriguing characters. The Bastard is half troll/half woman. Played by Dell’Arte Founding Artistic Director, Joan Schirle, there is a great howl of agony at the center of this character. It is almost not possible for a person to be this tormented and still live – yet, that is the source of her humor too.

The language of The Liar will reflect the half Danish, half American cast. Like The Bastard, the work will be infused with the interplay of Scandinavian and American cultural perspectives. The Liar will be played in a world of “commedia noir” – a mask world that is visually spectacular, at times comical, and often cabaret. Live music, original song and accordions abound. Peer was a liar, unable to combine truth with reality. He found himself unable to live in the world of fantasy he had constructed for himself and that the prevailing culture perpetuates. He slowly began taking that first step toward humanity. Ibsen’s play is about choice. Does one embark on the difficult trek of becoming a true human being or remain blind – a troll interested only in oneself and individual gain?

Jomfru Ane Teatret of Aalborg, Denmark has a 40-year history of creating bold new work with an ongoing ensemble of artists. The Dell’Arte Company has for 30 years been one of the leading physical ensemble companies in the United States. The collaboration between these two renowned companies has been years in the making. In The Liar, both ensembles see an urgent contemporary link to the experience of our times. This deep, richly textured work will highlight the individual and collective strengths of both companies in a creation of a theatrical scale that neither company could accomplish alone.

Box office will open 1 hour before curtain

Appropriate For Ages: 13 +