Peer Gynt

Ibsen’s “Peer Gynt” is often regarded as the “Nordic Faust.” It is the story of a young man who attempts to transcend the limitations of his everyday life and, in his egocentric quest for freedom, literally stops at nothing. He wants to escape the stifling provincial confines of his youth and, in doing so, also overcome the meager financial means he inherited from his parents. He gets involved in all sorts of shady deals and avoids taking on any responsibility. He leaves his hometown and, thanks to his reckless behavior, initially enjoys great success. It is not until the second half of his life that the ghosts of his deeds catch up with him. Impoverished and lonely, he returns to the places of his childhood, and he is ultimately forgiven only because a woman he briefly loved in his youth has a different conception of responsibility and loyalty and reaches out to him at the end of his life. 

Much about this vividly evocative story is surprisingly modern. Ibsen satirically depicts a cutthroat form of capitalism that causes human values to wither away. For the first stage adaptation, Edvard Grieg composed incidental music that contributed significantly to the play’s worldwide success. 

In a new, suspenseful dance production—in which the theater’s chorus and extra chorus also participate musically—Ballet Director Olaf Schmidt and Director Boris von Poser will transform this fantastic story and the title character’s imaginative life journey into moving images.