Sheffield Theatres: A Doll's House is a tense, captivating show of balancing secrets and stability - review

Siena Kelly gave a spectacular performance as Nora, barely being offstage for a minute in the play’s two and a half hour runtime, but not faltering once.

Nora’s childhood friendship with Christina (Eleanor Sutton), steadily and naturally revealed details of her past, with the nice touch of her original accent pulling through.

Christina seemed to provide a down-to-earth voice throughout - having lost everything herself, she saw things more clearly than some of the others, and not being afraid to criticise or at least hold up a mirror to Nora.

Krogstad (Eben Figueiredo) masterfully unsettles the audience as, initially, a classic villain.

As the nuances and history of his character, like Nora’s, are unveiled, you find yourself empathising with a man who Nora’s husband Torvald (Tom Glenister) and close family friend Dr Rank (Aaron Anthony) convinced you to fear.

Torvald and Dr Rank contrast subtly throughout as characters, in what it truly means to know a person, and in how people respond in the face of things falling apart.

Many lines, particularly from a clueless Torvald, believing he knows best about everything - things which his ‘airhead’ wife could never fathom - provided moments of comic relief and showed perhaps Nora’s experience is not too far-removed from those in the audience today.

Mel Lowe as Anna, the pianist and maid, was perhaps the smallest role of the six. Still, the audience hung off her every word, particularly in a personal conversation with Nora when we got a hint about her background. In another life they could easily be in each other’s place, reinforcing the fragility of any woman’s living situation in this harsh, traditional society.

The thrust stage, along with thoughtful and occasionally striking choices of lighting and sound design created an immersive atmosphere, leaving you feeling like you are sat in the oppressive atmosphere of the house yourself, your own secrets at risk of being aired.

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Not having seen earlier versions, I can’t say exactly how much has changed in Chris Bush’s (Standing at the Sky’s edge) adaptation. But her work along with Elin Schofield’s directing, lively performances from every actor and precise, intentional set design earned a wall-to-wall standing ovation last night, which was very well-deserved.

A Doll’s House is playing at The Crucible until October 12, with more details available here.