Auburn University Theatre opens its 2014-2015 season with ‘Hedda Gabler’

The Auburn University Theatre in the College of Liberal Arts opens its 2014-2015 season with the drama "Hedda Gabler" on Thursday, Sept. 25, at 7:30 p.m. on the main stage of the Telfair Peet Theatre.

Show dates are Sept. 25, 26 and 30 through Oct. 3 at 7:30 p.m., with a matinee performance Sept. 28 at 2:30 p.m.

Season subscriptions are available for $50 through Oct. 3. Subscribers will enjoy six productions plus two additional tickets to any production during the season, for a savings of $70. General tickets are $15 and may be purchased online at www.auburnuniversitytheatre.org, or by phone at (334) 844-4154. Additional ticket information can be found at the website or by contacting box office manager Linda Bell at (334) 844-4154. To view the complete season, go to http://www.cla.auburn.edu/theatre/productions/.

"Hedda Gabler," the play's title character, yearns for a freedom that lies beyond her financial security, respectable marriage and enviable social position. Henrik Ibsen's iconic play about a woman caught between the desires of her spirit and the social pressure to conform comes to life in the crisply contemporary adaptation by Christopher Shinn.

"I find 'Hedda Gabler' to be Henrik Ibsen's most explosive play," said director Chris Qualls, associate professor of theatre in the College of Liberal Arts. "His earlier masterpiece, 'A Doll's House,' seems positively tame compared to this conflagration of emotion and violence. Hedda is both deeply sympathetic and simultaneously horrifying. Her machinations would make Lady Macbeth blush. As Orlando Brown is fond of saying, 'One should not yoke the Bengal, lest one part with a hand.' Hedda is a warrior – beautiful, but not to be caged."

The cast includes Savannah Goldsmith, sophomore and musical theatre major, as Hedda Tesman; Michael Sanders, sophomore and musical theatre major, as Jorgen Tesman; Geneva Willis, junior and performance major, as Thea Elvsted; Jordan Lunstead, junior and musical theatre major, as Ejlert Lovborg; Ben Strickland, sophomore and theatre major, as Judge Brack, Daley Browning, senior and musical theatre major, as Aunt Julle; and Taylor Newton, sophomore and musical theatre major, as Berte.

"Hedda Gabler" is produced in special arrangement with Playscripts, Inc., www.playscripts.com.

The Auburn University Department of Theatre is dedicated to the education and professional training of theatre artists, scholars and audiences within a liberal arts environment. The department champions the interaction between theory and practice and produces citizen artists who advocate for the arts through their own work in local, national and international communities. Auburn University Theatre students think critically, creatively and collaboratively and carry their knowledge from rehearsal spaces and classrooms to stages, campuses and communities worldwide.