Jakob Weis recently flew in to London to take part in [Foreign Affairs] international festival of theatre. The final segment of ‘5 Days of [Foreign Affairs]’ was devoted to the author’s brilliant and thought-provoking play, Helmer Hardcore.
For two nights only, [Foreign Affairs] performed the final scene of Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House and the opening scene of Jakob Weis Helmer Hardcore, before easing their way into a rehearsed reading of the full play. Following the reading, the author and I faced questions from a panel of experts and an inquisitive audience. Thought the full title of the play is Helmer Hardcore, A Doll’s House 2, during the ensuing discussion, it became clear that Ibsen’s A Doll’s House was less inspiration and more utilisation for Weis, as the author chose Ibsen’s world-famous play as a means of engaging with a topic that was close to his heart. More details on this and the upcoming production to follow!
A huge thank you to Jakob Weis, the panelists, the Danish Arts Council for supporting Jakob’s trip to London, and of course [Foreign Affairs] and the wonderful actors who brought this play to life, for giving a glimpse of what’s to come in their upcoming production, The Helmer Project.