Review: HEDDA GABLER at Kavinoky Theatre

Lady Macbeth, Blanche DuBois, Medea… all are dream roles for any actress to conquer. And Henrik Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler ranks right up there with these supercharged women who dominate the stage. Kavinoky  Theatre is presenting a new version of HEDDA GABLER by Patrick Marber ( from a literal translation by Karin and Ann Bamborough).

Marber streamlines the action from the original 1891 four act play to a two acter with four scenes. The drama is there alongside some prescient quips of brutal sarcasm. Hedda returns from a six month honeymoon with a dreadfully boring new husband George Tesman. Hedda marries for the mere convenience of having a professor husband who could provide for her excesses of a luxurious life. His rich and overbearing aunt Julianna is a bother to Hedda. The brilliant writer Eilert Lovborg is George’s rival, but Lovborg is prone to excessive drinking and  enjoying wonton women of the local brothel, as well as being Hedda’s former love.

When former school pal Thea Elvsted visits Hedda and George in a distraught headspace, it’s clear that Thea once cared for George, but has settled in as a wife to a much older man. Her one joy in life is to aid Lovborg in writing his next opus AND keeping him sober. The relationships here need diagramming, as each character has somehow been entrenched with the others, albeit often in back door romances. Enter Judge Brack, who has a commanding upper hand in all that he touches, including his desires for Hedda.

Our Hedda is the great Buffalo stage actress Kate LoConti Alcocer and it seems this production was tailor made for her. Hedda is role that requires cold calculated actions, often spoken, often purely reactive. LoConti Alcocer’s first entrance is chilling as she stands perfectly still with a facial expression that instantly chills. Her Hedda speaks her mind while being completely unapologetic and demanding. She exudes power in a world where women were mere pawns, made to look pretty and be perfect hostesses. LoConti Alcocer revels in her strength and manipulative head games, and she exudes a commanding presence. She wields her father’s guns, shoves, and even pulls hair. Hedda’s outward strengths are what define her in her own mind, but in this man’s world, her strengths will only become part of her ruin. LoConti Alcocer is riveting as she assures she is in control, until the final moments when her silent screams signal her demise.

Jordan Levin is perfectly cast as George. As if ordered from central casting, Levin embodies the nerdy academic with tousled receding curls and wiry frame. George is naive when it comes to Hedda’s cold demeanor, but still believes she truly loves him. Levin  brings a quirky charm to the role but his portrayal is based in true emotions, which he adeptly conveys through genuine love, heartbreak and civility… basically all the charms that Hedda lacks. Levin  masterfully becomes the perfect sympathetic character that does not deserve all the blows he is dealt.

Ben Michael Moran turns in a gut wrenching performance as Lovborg. His calm demeanor is broken down slowly by Hedda’s mental manipulations. Moran’s portrayal is imbued with a poignant heartbreak, as he beautifully conveys the inner torture of losing all that he holds dear… namely Thea, Hedda, and his beloved manuscript.  His final interactions with Hedda have Moran and LoConti Alcocer at their finest. Their long history comes to an end and Hedda manipulates his mind, even if her success comes at the cost of his own life.

Roderick Garr is wonderfully charming as the all knowing Judge Brack. He plays a perpetual game of cat and mouse with Hedda, with both of them vying for dominance. Garr’s calmness reeks of control and power. And in Hedda he may have met his match. But this piece remains true to the period, and allowing Hedda to be the victor  most certainly would go against the grain.

Arin Lee Dandes is quite convincing as Thea, a woman who perpetually walks in the shadows of others. Dandes embodies the wounded soul who has spent a lifetime looking for even an iota of happiness. Her Thea is subtle and kind, and Dandes represents the perfect anti-Hedda. Thea  is an outlier of sorts, as she risks the cruel damnation by society as a woman who abandons her husband and stepchildren for a better life. But Hedda ensures that Thea is but her mere pawn, and Thea's joy is of no consequence to Hedda.

Mary Moebius brings a brusque sense of efficiency as the housemaid Berte. But it’s clear she sees through Hedda. Priscilla Young-Anker plays the caring Aunt Juliana as a good Christian martyr, who loves her nephew George and wants to please his new wife. Young-Anker embodies familial love, even when Hedda is cruel to her at all turns.

The lovely classical set design by Ron Schwartz is subtly lit by Lighting Designer Brian Cavanagh. Costumes by  Ann Emo were expertly tailored and evocative of the period.

Director Fortunato Pezzimenti is again working with a marvelous cast, including LoConti Alcocer and Moran who starred in his spectacular production of THE PRICE at Irish Classical Theatre. Pezzimenti  gives  the actors their own space and time to develop their characters without overly fussy staging and histrionics. Ibsen’s script would have shocked audiences of his time for having such a daringly bold and often rude character as Hedda dominate the action. Her comments and asides which now have some comic effect would then been considered shocking , immoral and improper. But somehow in Marber’s new version, the vulgarities of Hedda’s often despicable behavior make her more human, in her keen awareness of her biting quips. Hedda's narcissism continues to offend society all these years later. The perseverance of a powerful woman most certainly makes for a high drama as she triumphs, but Hedda Gabler's ruthless behavior instead makes her a delicious villainess who ultimately loses her battle .

HEDDA GABLER plays at D’Youville University's Kavinoky Theatre through March 21, 2026. Contact kavinokytheatre.com for more information.