U of Ideas of General Interest November 1999
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Contact: Melissa Mitchell, Arts Editor (217) 333-5491; [email protected]
MUSIC
Abridged adaptation of "Peer Gynt" to feature international cast
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. He's an arrogant yet charismatic rogue, known for stretching the truth and liking the ladies a little too much and in the end, his salvation is the love of a loyal woman.
While this description is one some people would apply to at least one character in the long-running, political passion plays staged in the nation's capital at the close of this century, it actually refers to the title character of Henrik Ibsen's 19th century drama "Peer Gynt." And that character along with the Mountain King and the Woman in Green, among others is about to be dusted off and brought to life again in an ambitious new musical production orchestrated by University of Illinois music professor Ian Hobson.
Hobson, the conductor and music director of the U. of I.-based Sinfonia da Camera chamber orchestra, is the mastermind behind the project, a collaboration involving Frank Hauser, the author of a new abridged adaptation of IbsenÃs original five-hour play, and British stage, screen and TV director Hugh Wooldridge. The premiere of the updated show — which features incidental music by Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg — is set for Nov. 19 at the U. of I.'s Krannert Center for the Performing Arts.
Grieg composed the music in 1876 for the first abbreviated version of Ibsen's 1867 drama, which was based in part on Norwegian folk legends, Hobson said. That version was performed in various locations throughout Europe, but the musical drama was rarely performed after that, in part because it remained somewhat lengthy. Grieg's music, however, proved to be far more enduring; in fact, a handful of works from "Peer Gynt," including "Solveig's Song," "Anitra's Dance" and "In the Hall of the Mountain King" remain popular today.
The new adaptation of the Ibsen-Grieg collaboration promises to be something of a spectacle. In addition to the musical score, which Sinfonia da Camera will perform upstage — behind the bare-bones set and action unfolding onstage — the production will feature vocal music by the U. of I. Chorale and dance, choreographed by U. of I. dance professor Philip Johnston, and performed by 16 students. U. of I. graduate theater students will get into the act as well, performing alongside a cast of featured professional actors from England and Wales.
The cast, assembled by Wooldridge, includes English actor David Rintoul in the title role; Welsh actor John Cording as the Mountain King; Welsh actress Rachel Bryant as Ase, Peer Gynt's mother; and American actress Connie Kunkle in dual roles as Ingrid and the Woman in Green.
"This is something I've been thinking about doing for 12 or 13 years," Hobson said. "It is difficult to say if anything like this has been done before in this century, in this country, but I rather doubt it because it is a big undertaking."
While there are no current plans to produce the show at other locations or venues, Hobson noted that he does hope to record the production for future release.
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