A marriage is sacred. It is the union of two people as one, and the ultimate act of love. In a spouse, one should find solace. They should find comfort and a peaceful place to hide from fears – at least in the ideal situation, which is far from where we find Nora and Torvald, the subjects of Otterbein's most recent production, "A Doll's House."
Torvald Helmer (Jake Robinson) is a newly hired bank manager whose fear of debt casts a shadow over his marriage to Nora (Joyah Spangler), a thrifty little "flitter bird" whose desire to spend only worsens her husbands opinion of her. In what is said to be the first true feminist play, Nora is anything but the epitome of feminism: She is handed from her father to her husband, she is denied certain foods, and in this borderline abusive relationship, her husband is not afraid to get a little rough. While it is true that marriages were often this way during the 19th century (which is when it takes place) Torvald's behavior becomes more and more questionable as Nora becomes more brash.
As Nora returns from a day of pre-Christmas shopping, an old friend comes to visit. Having no children and a deceased husband, long-lost Kristine (Stanzi Davis) needs a job. Not realizing its negative effects, Nora offers a position at her husbands bank. Though this position belonged to someone else – someone to be feared.
As the story progresses, the audience learns of Torvald's illness. He had been working too hard and needed a vacation that was not exactly within the family's budget. Once again acting sans thought, Nora borrowed a large sum of money from a family friend. Upon this act, Torvald's greatest fear moved into his house, where it dwelled for years, unnoticed. Though as Christine's job infringed upon that of this family friend, years of dark secrets were en route to daylight.
Much of the play's initial success was due to it's controversial matter. Surely a woman could not leave her family, nor could she disobey her husband; though this lack of social tension did not detract from this weekend's performance. Perhaps it was the twisting a multi-layered relationship of the characters that captivated Otter-audiences,or maybe it was the fractured relationship that most can relate to. Regardless of its cause, "A Doll's House" seemed to leap into a time machine, and translate well into this time nearly 200 years later.
