NORACORE by Anna Bănică
an Outland Theatre Berlin production directed by Bailey Hubbs
inspired by A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen
Cast: Anna Bănică, Lukas Blaukovitsch, Shivani Bajaj, Kristers Ozols, Andreea Bănică | Director: Bailey Hubbs | Assistant Director & Stage Manager: Ann Toma-Toader | Producer: Anna Bănică | Assistant Producer: Gréta Ciubuc-Szabó | Composer: Bailey Hubbs | Photographer: Giovanna Wolney
Duration: 90 minutes, no break
Performance languages: English, Romanian (with English subtitles)
About the show
Written as a modern retelling of Henrik Ibsen's Doll House, the play follows Sabina, a 24-year-old Romanian Architecture graduate, who flees the oppressive expectations of her homeland only to confront the alienation and exploitation of Western liberalism. Struggling to find her footing, she shoulders financial and emotional burdens to support her boyfriend Adam, an idealistic but entitled actor chasing his big break, as Torvald Helmer in an independent production of "A Doll's House".
The play intertwines Sabina's story with a vivid ensemble of characters: her judgmental mother Narcisa, her brash and carefree best friend Stephanie, and Adam's toxic and opportunistic friend Oliver. Each relationship serves as a mirror reflecting Sabina's struggle to reconcile societal expectations, personal agency, and survival in a neoliberal world. Stephanie's unapologetic embrace of privilege and her endorsement of online sex work as an empowering way to earn fast money leads Sabina to make a decision rooted not in liberation, but desperation.
Layered with biting commentary on feminism, this fresh and original story critiques the commodification of bodies and identities under the guise of autonomy and choice and juxtaposes the promises of neoliberalism, asking whether true agency exists for those already marginalized. This is not just a retelling, but a reinvention-a reminder that Nora's decision to walk out of her "doll's house" is still a battle many women face today.
Trigger & content warnings: strobe lights, sexual assault, explicit sexual language, misogyny
About the company
Outland Theatre Berlin is a collective of professional, international artists based in Berlin, founded in 2023. Our cast and crew members immigrated to Germany within the past few years from countries such as Romania, Latvia, the United States of America, in order to get an education and pursue a career in the arts. Our company came together out of our need to feel represented within Berlin's multicultural scene and English-speaking audiences and out of a simultaneous need to hold space for neurodivergent, FLINTA, BIPOC, LGBTQ+ artists and audiences.
DE:
Duration: 90 minutes without intermission
Language: English and Romanian (with English subtitles)
About the play:
Written as a modern retelling of Henrik Ibsen's "Nora or A Doll's Home", the play follows Sabina, a 24-year-old Romanian architecture graduate. She flees the oppressive expectations of her homeland, only to find herself confronted with the alienation and exploitation of Western liberalism. As she struggles to find her footing, she bears financial and emotional burdens to support her boyfriend Adam. Adam is an idealistic but demanding actor who is chasing his big break by playing the role of Torvald Helmer in an independent production of "Nora or A Doll's Home".
The play cleverly intertwines Sabina's story with the multi-faceted characters of the ensemble: her judgmental mother Narcisa, her brash and carefree best friend Stephanie and Adam's toxic and opportunistic boyfriend Oliver. Each relationship serves as a mirror, reflecting Sabina's struggle to reconcile societal expectations, personal agency and survival in a neoliberal world. Stephanie's unapologetic acceptance of privilege and her endorsement of online sex work as an empowering way to make a quick buck lead Sabina to a decision rooted not in liberation, but in despair. Laced with biting commentary on feminism, this fresh and original story critiques the commodification of bodies and identities under the guise of autonomy and choice and confronts the promises of neoliberalism, questioning whether true agency exists for already marginalized people. This is not just a retelling, but a reinvention - a reminder that Nora's decision to leave her "doll home" is still a struggle that many women face today.
About the group:
Outland Theatre Berlin is a collective of professional, international artists based in Berlin, founded in 2023. Our cast and crew members have immigrated to Germany in recent years from countries such as Romania, Latvia and the United States of America to pursue training and careers in the arts. Our ensemble was born out of a need to feel represented in Berlin's multicultural scene and English-speaking audiences, as well as to create space for neurodivergent, FLINTA, BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists and audiences.
The play, written as a modern retelling of Henrik Ibsen's "Nora or A Doll's Home", follows Sabina, a 24-year-old Romanian architecture graduate. She flees the oppressive expectations of her homeland, only to find herself confronted with the alienation and exploitation of Western liberalism. As she struggles to find her footing, she bears financial and emotional burdens to support her boyfriend Adam. Adam is an idealistic but demanding actor who chases his big break by playing the role of Torvald Helmer in an independent production of "Nora or A Doll's Home"
This content has been machine translated.