Ghosts At The Lyric
No there are no actual ghosts at the Lyric Hammersmith, but the play ‘Ghosts’ brings a fascinating aura to the theatre.
This is a modern interpretation of the classic by the Norwegian playwright Henrick Ibsen. It was written in Danish and first published in 1881 and first staged in 1882 in Chicago, Illinois. USA. Like many of Ibsen’s plays, Ghosts is a scathing commentary on 19th-century morality.
Because of its subject matter, which includes religion, venereal disease, incest and euthenasia, it immediately generated strong controversy and negative criticism.
Ghosts follows Helena, a woman determined to preserve her late husband’s legacy by opening a children’s hospital in his name. However, when their son Oz returns home for the unveiling, his own ambitions threaten to unearth long-buried family secrets.
In transporting the action of the play to present-day England, its themes of family loyalty and the legacy of inheritance reveal themselves to be as timely as ever.
Ghosts runs from 10 April to 10 May 2025 at the Lyric Hammersmith, London.