US Premiere of August Strindberg Rep Of FIRST WARNING! Comes to Theater For The New City In October

Theater for the New City will present August Strindberg Rep in the American premiere of First Warning! (1892), running October 2–12, 2025, at Theater for the New City (155 First Ave. at E. 10th Street).

Translated and directed by Robert Greer, this rarely seen work is Strindberg’s only comedy, offering a lighter, satirical side of the playwright best known for Miss Julie and The Father.

Set in Switzerland in 1953 in Greer’s new adaptation, First Warning! follows Axel and Olga, a married couple of fifteen stormy years, as jealousy, vanity, and reconciliation clash in a comedic tale of marital quarrels. Strindberg pokes fun at generational divides, bourgeois morality, and the follies of men, with the young Rosa offering ironic commentary that resonates across time. Unlike Strindberg’s darker dramas, the story resolves with humor, irony, and reconciliation.

The cast features Natalie Menna as Olga, Mike Roche as Axel, Holly O’Brien as Rosa, and Anne Stockton as the Baroness. The creative team includes lighting designer Alexander Bartenieff, Costume Designer Billy Little, and stage manager Jose Ruiz.

Research by translator and director Robert Greer has found no previous English-language production of this play, making this a significant premiere for American audiences. Greer’s staging highlights the farcical and fairy-tale qualities of the script, described as “reminiscent of an elaborate Swiss clock.”

Originally titled Första varningen, the play premiered in Berlin in 1893 under the title Herbstzeichen (Signs of Autumn) and was later staged in Sweden, Stockholm’s Intima Teatern, and on Swedish Radio Theatre under the direction of Ingmar Bergman. Rosa’s precocious role provoked controversy at the time but has since been praised for its candor and wit.