NEXTpittsburgh – Modern architecture meets modern drama for Quantum Theatre’s brand new site-specific production. Always keeping its pulse on the transformative potential of urban spaces and the evocative relationships that exist between exterior built environments and interior psychological states, Quantum’s latest ambitious undertaking will reimagine a storied Northside complex as the setting for Henrik Ibsen’s 1892 play, The Master Builder.
Setting up shop on the 9th floor of Two Allegheny Center—with sweeping views of the Northside and Downtown—Quantum will lead audiences into the mind of architect Halvard Solness. The middle-aged, master builder of a small Norwegian town, Ibsen’s protagonist has achieved success and distinction—yet his “principles drive him past conventional morality and threaten to destroy him.” The drama unfolds when Solness becomes “jealous of younger rivals” and meets a seductive young woman named Hilda Wangel, as the play explores guilt, ego, imagination, and more.
Directing the cast of seven actors is frequent Quantum collaborator and Ibsen enthusiast, Martin Giles. A Pittsburgh-based director, actor and playwright, Giles also teaches at Point Park University. The play stars several Quantum veterans, including John Shepard as Halvard Solness, Catherine Moore as Aline Solness, Phil Winters as Dr. Herdal and Thomas Constantine Moore as Ragnar Brovik. Newcomers include Hayley Neilsen (Hilda Wangel), Kelly Trumbull (Kaja Fosli) and John Reilly (Knut Brovik).
Helping to create the play’s authentic mid-century modern environs are set designs by Tony Ferrieri, costumes by Richard Parsakian, lighting by Alex Stevens and sound by Aaron Vockley. The production will also feature a selection of recorded, mid-20th-century music, including Dmitri Shostakovich’s String Quartets, as well as evocative sound effects…
