The Santa Barbara City College Theatre Group starts off this season with their first play, Henrik Ibsen’s tragedy, “Ghosts.”
In earlier times “Ghosts” had been highly controversial due to content including infidelity, incest, and sexually transmitted diseases. However, in today’s entertainment world our almost limitless boundaries in terms of censorship, leave this play’s shock-value significantly deteriorated. Ibsen’s script, however, still retains its value.
The play begins on a well-dressed, dimly-lit set, with eerie music creating a sense of mystery for what is to come.
The audience soon learns Director Katie Laris’ cast consists of only five players supported by a very large production staff.
The play takes place in Western Norway, 1881. In the opening scene we are introduced to Jakob and Regina Engstrand, played by Edward K. Romine and Elizabeth Knache. Jakob hobbles onto the set on a special shoe made to help support what he describes only as his “bum leg.” The added height on his left leg creates an awkward and unstable persona. Romine, always an excellent character actor, brings Jakob to life giving him dimension and bringing the somber play comic relief.
Regina the Alving’s house maid, is utterly disgusted with her father, and tries her best to avoid his outlandish remarks. She makes every effort to get him out of the house before the “young master” is disturbed. Just as Jakob is hurried out the back door the Pastor makes his entrance.
Brian Harwell plays the well-to-do Pastor Manders, very concerned with making wise choices and giving good advice. Manders’ dry and dull personality makes his animated emotional breakdown somewhat hard to believe as the story unfolds. This being a preview and only the second performance, Harwell was visibly nervous, stumbling slightly a few times in his lines. Despite the jitters his performance was still strong.
Manders shows up at Mrs. Helene Alving’s house to discuss plans for the dedication of an orphanage erected in her late husband’s name. As Helene Alving, performed by Allison Coutts-Jordan, decides to confess her hatred for her late husband because of his dishonest life filled with secrets, the main theme of the play is introduced. She tells the Pastor of the second life she created to hide the truth from her son, Osvald.
Coutts-Jordan paints a strong picture of Helene Alving’s ghosts. She presents the idea that we all have our own ghosts in some form or another. Whether they are people that have come and gone in our lives or ethereal ideas and stories that at one time existed before us, they somehow haunt us forever no matter where we go. Coutts-Jordan sparkles as Mrs. Alving, even when she’s silent you can’t take your eyes off her.
The idea of ghosts comes up almost constantly throughout the rest of the play as Helene Alving’s son, Osvald, played by Walker Collin, struggles with his own ghosts. Unaware of his father’s secret life, Osvald shares his surprise to learn that he is stricken with a disease he inherited from his father. The syphilis (modern audiences may have to be told it is actually syphilis that ails him – Ibsen is vague) shames him and disables him from continuing his work as an artist.
As his character gets caught up in the guilt associated with his disease and seems to think the only way he will be saved is by winning the love of Regina Engstrand. After a long and grueling battle trying to explain himself to his mother, Osvald finally learns about, and gives into, his ghosts. Collin really shows Osvald’s agony with a culmination of all the ghosts that tormented his character all at once in his life finally overtaking him.
All in all the play is well done with excellent direction and production support but Ibsen is not for your casual theatergoer. Many City College students may find his work to be too obscure compared to today’s dramatic productions. However, for lovers of classic theater and Ibsen fans this is a great opportunity to see some shining local talent.
The play will run Oct. 22 through Nov. 6 in the Garvin Theatre. Performances begin at 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and at 2 p.m. on Sundays. Ticket are $17 to $19 with discounts available. For more information and reservations call the Garvin Theatre Box Office at (805) 965-5935.