Ark Theatre

An Enemy Of The People

NOW PLAYING

LIMITED ENGAGEMENT
Box Office: 323.969.1707

AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE

written by Henrik Ibsen
adapted by Paul Wagar
directed by Kelly Ann Ford

with:
Scot Carlisle, David Ghilardi*,
JoAnna Jocelyn*, Kenn Johnson,
Helene McCardle, Quincy Miller,
Maria Pasquarelli, Caroline Sharp,
Steve Shields, and Ann Simmons.

The strongest man in the world is he who stands alone. This noble sentiment will be thoroughly tested in Henrik Ibsen's stirring drama, An Enemy of the People, presented by the Ark Theatre Company. A sleepy Norwegian town celebrates the success of its new bathing complex as it draws tourists and their money. When Dr. Stockman discovers that the baths are being polluted by a local tannery, his objections are met with resentment and skepticism by his brother, the town mayor. As the Doctor attempts to rally the town to remedy the problem, he finds himself increasingly isolated, a perhaps too well-intentioned crusader shouted down by government authority, an angry populace and a self-interested press.

Written in 1882 as an indictment of contemporary society, Ibsen's insights remain as relevant and timely more than a century later. Modern conflicts between government and the governed, the individual and the majority, science and commercialism are starkly mirrored in Ibsen's scathing, unsettling polemic.

Kelly Ann Ford directs Paul Wagar's streamlined adaptation. Ford, a constant presence on the Los Angeles theatre scene, has received numerous awards and nominations including the GLAAD Award for Outstanding Los Angeles Theatre, an NAACP nomination for Best Director, and several LA Weekly nominations.