Considering that a certain former U.S. president has made its title into a veritable catchphrase, Henrik Ibsen’s 1882 play An Enemy of the People seems more relevant than ever. Not to mention the Covid epidemic in which its theme of public safety vs. economic considerations found an eerie modern-day parallel. So why, one might ask, has director Sam Gold and adapter Amy Herzog felt such an intense need to muck with it for this Broadway revival starring two major cable television stars, Jeremy Strong of Succession and Michael Imperioli of The Sopranos?
The answer is that Gold has never encountered a classic drama he didn’t think he couldn’t improve. If you’ve endured his disastrous Broadway productions of Macbeth, King Lear, and The Glass Menagerie, you know what I’m talking about. In this case, he seems to be saying, “Come for a timeless Ibsen play, stay for an interactive comedy! And hey, free drinks!”
The melodramatic plot — about a doctor in a coastal Norwegian town who finds himself increasingly besieged after he attempts to warn the citizens about the toxic effects of the water in the spa on which it financially relies — has been borrowed countless times, perhaps most popularly in Peter Benchley’s Jaws. It has also been adapted frequently, most notably by Arthur Miller, and it’s not inappropriate to alter it for modern sensibilities. In order for its protagonist Dr. Thomas Stockmann (Strong) to be sympathetic to a modern-day audience, for instance, it’s probably best to downplay his enthusiasm for eugenics.
[Read Melissa Rose Bernardo’s ★★★★☆ review here.]
But this rendition relies on the sort of gimmickry that makes it seem as if the play has to be dumbed-down in order to be palatable. This is most evident beginning with a “pause” in the action midway through, in which a bar is wheeled onto the stage and we’re invited to party with the cast members and indulge in a shot of Linie (a Norwegian liqueur that tastes like mouthwash) as the song “Take On Me” blares over the loudspeakers. (The 1985 song is by A-ha, a Norwegian band. Get it?). After the merriment concludes, certain audience members are invited to remain onstage, looking highly enthusiastic as the townspeople condemn Stockmann for warning them of the health dangers threatening them. We’re also treated to several musical interludes during the scene changes, which doesn’t quite compensate for nearly a third of the play being lopped off.
This adaptation by Amy Herzog (Mary Jane, 4000 Miles) not surprisingly leans heavily toward jarring modern-day vernacular despite the period costumes, as when Stockman’s rich father-in-law (the wonderful David Patrick Kelly, who seems to be turning more and more into a leprechaun with every stage appearance) complains, “I thought she was messing with me at first!” She’s also taken the liberty of removing the character of Stockmann’s wife, rendering him a widower. (Presumably, the poor woman drank the water at the spa.)
The production’s main strength, and commercial raison d’etre, is its two leads, with the white-hot Strong predictably excellent, if perhaps slightly bland, as Stockmann. He effectively mines the character’s dignity and self-effacement, if not the volcanic intensity that Ian McKellen conveyed so brilliantly years ago in a National Theatre production directed by Trevor Nunn that was as epic as this one is miniscule. And a subdued Imperioli is very effective as Peter Stockmann, the mayor and head of the baths, who responds to his brother’s dire warnings about the contaminated water not with gratitude but hostility, advising that if the findings become public, the town will face devastating consequences and so will Thomas.
Unfortunately, with the exception of the always reliable Thomas Jay Ryan who brings sly humor to his portrayal of the self-serving printer Aslaksen, the rest of the mostly miscast ensemble fail to do justice to their roles, falling short of even such minimal requirements as making their dialogue legible in one of the most intimate houses on Broadway.
In this rendition of the play, when Stockmann vainly attempts to warn the citizens of the water’s danger at the town meeting they attack him by throwing bucketloads of ice cubes on him. In the next scene, it’s left to poor Jeremy Strong to painstakingly assemble the cubes into a neat pile. The actor’s cleaning up serves as a metaphor for a production so messy and ill-conceived it makes you wonder how the play has endured for nearly 150 years.
An Enemy of the People March 18, 2024, at Circle in the Square and runs through June 23. Tickets and information: anenemyofthepeopleplay.com
