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madeleinegeorge's review against another edition
5.0
Ibsen: All bangers, all the time. I never forget how much I love this play, but I always forget how much I love this play until I see or read it again. It’s all *gasp*! A plot twist? No! But it’s always yes and then ten minutes later there’s another one and you gasp all over again even though you know exactly what’s coming.
The first time I read Ghosts I was fifteen; the only thing I remember gleaning from it was the snarling, fathomless pit of Longing and Want that the play swirls around -- even though I didn’t necessarily understand exactly what it was they were longing for. I also really wanted to play Father Manders, but that’s besides the point. Like all Great Theater, I think it ages with you, and every time I come away with something new. This time it was the transformation of the home from a space of domestic security to one of proleptic decay. “Everything is dead here.” I heard that, this time. Heard also the men who sacrificed women to ruin, the men that saved them from it. The mother who had nothing left to give but mercy -- and gave that, too. The girl who tore herself from that haunted house’s fatal clutch, even when compelled to stay. I fear I am old enough, now, to know what they Long for.
Hattie + Stuart + Paul + Sarah + Greg are absolute Forces in the Globe this season. A reminder for those who, like myself, habitually forget: the Sam Wanamaker is hot, dark, and incredibly claustrophobic ( … almost like the play itself, no way, that’s crazy…). So. Bear that in mind. BUT go see it nonetheless! The acting! The set! Henrik in all his glory! Stunning.
The first time I read Ghosts I was fifteen; the only thing I remember gleaning from it was the snarling, fathomless pit of Longing and Want that the play swirls around -- even though I didn’t necessarily understand exactly what it was they were longing for. I also really wanted to play Father Manders, but that’s besides the point. Like all Great Theater, I think it ages with you, and every time I come away with something new. This time it was the transformation of the home from a space of domestic security to one of proleptic decay. “Everything is dead here.” I heard that, this time. Heard also the men who sacrificed women to ruin, the men that saved them from it. The mother who had nothing left to give but mercy -- and gave that, too. The girl who tore herself from that haunted house’s fatal clutch, even when compelled to stay. I fear I am old enough, now, to know what they Long for.
Hattie + Stuart + Paul + Sarah + Greg are absolute Forces in the Globe this season. A reminder for those who, like myself, habitually forget: the Sam Wanamaker is hot, dark, and incredibly claustrophobic ( … almost like the play itself, no way, that’s crazy…). So. Bear that in mind. BUT go see it nonetheless! The acting! The set! Henrik in all his glory! Stunning.
magarethe's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
paula12's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I really liked this. There's quite a lot of detail and ideas to chew on and some quite interesting critiques of marriage, parenthood and religion and its negative social influence. I just basically wish the ending was a bit different, it just felt like everything resolved a bit too fast and unsatisfactory but yeah its still pretty good.
fly's review against another edition
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Entertaining
kennaly's review
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
perditism's review against another edition
4.0
3.5
thematically rich play. "And we are, all of us, so pitifully afraid of the light."
thematically rich play. "And we are, all of us, so pitifully afraid of the light."
alina_kkn____'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0