The Lady from the Sea

The Lady from the Sea
Title page of the first English edition, 1890
Original languageNorwegian
Written byHenrik Ibsen
CharactersEllida Wangel
Dr Wangel
The Stranger
Hilde Wangel
Bolette Wangel
Arnholm
Lyngstrand
Ballestad
SubjectMarriage, freedom
GenreTragedy
SettingA town by a fjord
Premiere
Date12 February 1889
PlaceKristiania and Weimar (simultaneous Norwegian and German premieres)

The Lady from the Sea (Norwegian: Fruen fra havet) is a play written in 1888 by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen inspired by the ballad Agnete og Havmanden. The drama was first translated in English by Eleanor Marx in 1890. The drama introduces the character of Hilde Wangel who is again portrayed in Ibsen's later play The Master Builder. Hilde Wangel has been portrayed twice in contemporary film, most recently in the 2014 film titled A Master Builder.

Characters

Synopsis

The central character, Ellida, is the daughter of a lighthouse-keeper, and grew up where the fjord met the open sea; she loves the sea. Her husband, Doctor Wangel, is a physician in a small fjord town in northern Norway who has two daughters (Bolette and Hilde) by his previous wife, now deceased. He and Ellida had a son who died as a baby. Ellida is restless and troubled by a former romantic attachment. Wangel, fearing for Ellida’s mental health, has invited up Arnholm, Bolette’s former tutor, and a former suitor to Ellida, in the hope that he can help Ellida.

Some years earlier Ellida was deeply in love and engaged to a sailor, but because he murdered his captain he had to escape. Nevertheless, he asked her to wait for him to come and fetch her. She tried to break the engagement, but he had too great a hold over her. The sailor then returns all these years later to claim her. Ellida then has to choose between her former lover or her husband. Dr Wangel finally recognises and accepts her freedom to choose since he comes to realise that he has no other option. This goes in his favour as she then chooses to remain with him. The play ends with the sailor leaving and Ellida and Wangel deciding to take up their lives again together.

Production history

Adaptations

References

  1. ↑ Per Schelde Jacobsen and Barbara Fass Leavy, Ibsen's Forsaken Merman: Folklore in the Late Plays (New York: New York University Press, 1988).
  2. ↑ Blake, Gary (1974). "Review of The Lady from the Sea". Educational Theatre Journal. 26 (1): 117. doi:10.2307/3206592. ISSN 0013-1989. JSTOR 3206592.
  3. ↑ Nigro, Kirsten F. (1978). "Review of Metamorphosis; The Lady from the Sea; Filumena". Educational Theatre Journal. 30 (2): 262–263. doi:10.2307/3206303. ISSN 0013-1989. JSTOR 3206303.
  4. ↑ Thomas, James (1979). "Review of The Lady from the Sea; Happy Days". Theatre Journal. 31 (4): 542. doi:10.2307/3219425. ISSN 0192-2882. JSTOR 3219425.
  5. ↑ Ganz, Dianne; Scheper, George (1988). "Review of THE LADY FROM THE SEA. CENTER STAGE". Ibsen News and Comment. 9: 24–27. ISSN 1089-6171. JSTOR 26578498.
  6. ↑ Carlson, Marvin (1990). "Review of The Lady from the Sea". Theatre Journal. 42 (3): 383. doi:10.2307/3208094. ISSN 0192-2882. JSTOR 3208094.
  7. ↑ Shafer, Yvonne (1991). "An Erotic "The Lady from the Sea" at the First International Ibsen Festival, Oslo, September 1990". Ibsen News and Comment. 12: 21–22. ISSN 1089-6171. JSTOR 26578405.
  8. ↑ Javin, Val (8 July 1994). "A Woman's Haunting Tale of Obsession". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. p. 12 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ Gore-Langton, Robert (25 July 1994). "Do the Thing that Scares you Witless". The Daily Telegraph. p. 17 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ Nadon, Daniel R. (1997). "Review of In Ellida's Mind: "The Lady from the Sea". The Cleveland Playhouse". Ibsen News and Comment. 17: 8–9. ISSN 1089-6171. JSTOR 26578605.
  11. ↑ Triplett, William (September 9, 2000). ""Ibsen's 'Lady': Deep Undercurrents"". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
  12. ↑ McLean, Robert Simpson (2000). "Review of Solid Revivals of "The Wild Duck" and "The Lady from the Sea". The Century Center for the Performing Arts". Ibsen News and Comment. 20: 24–25. ISSN 1089-6171. JSTOR 26578701.
  13. ↑ May, Gergana (2001). "Review of An Ambiguous Lady from the Sea. Intiman Theatre". Ibsen News and Comment. 21: 15–16. ISSN 1089-6171. JSTOR 26578685.
  14. ↑ Wright, Rochelle (2006). "Review of John Gabriel Borkman. The Royal Dramatic Theater; The Lady from the Sea. The Municipal Theatre". Ibsen News and Comment. 26: 23–25. ISSN 1089-6171. JSTOR 26578751.
  15. ↑ Dolgin, Ellen (2015). "Review of The Lady from the Sea. The Shaw Festival". Ibsen News and Comment. 35: 34–36. ISSN 1089-6171. JSTOR 26575980.
  16. ↑ Mitchell, Leon (2020-07-06), The Lady from the Sea (Drama), Cinalight, retrieved 2021-10-18
  17. ↑ "The Lady From the Sea Tickets". London Theatre Direct. Retrieved 14 September 2025.
  18. ↑ Carlson, Marvin (2009). "Review of Sounding (Mixed-media performance based on The Lady from the Sea)". Ibsen News and Comment. 29: 7. ISSN 1089-6171. JSTOR 26573547.
  19. ↑ "BBC Radio 3 - Drama on 3, the Lady from the Sea".
  20. ↑ "'Sagara Kanyaka' to have an international venue".