Henrik Ibsen

Hedda Gabler Henrik Ibsen

About Hedda Gabler: The entire play takes place in the Tesman's living room and in a smaller room to its side. Jürgen Tesman and Hedda Tesman (nee Hedda Gabler) are newlyweds. They have just returned from a six-month honeymoon. Hedda is aristocratic and hard to please. Throughout the play, it becomes apparent that Hedda is pregnant. At the beginning of Act 1, Tesman wakes to find his Aunt Julle has arrived for a visit. Aunt Julle raised Tesman and still supports him financially. When Hedda enters, however, she is rather rude to Aunt Julle. Tesman asks her to be kinder, but she clearly has little real interest in him either. Soon, Mrs. Elvsted arrives, bringing news that Tesman's old academic rival, Ejlert Lövborg, is back in town. Lövborg had been an alcoholic and a failure, but now he has reformed. Eventually, Hedda gets Tesman to leave, and she convinces Mrs. Elvsted to confide in her. She learns that Mrs. Elvsted is scared Ejlert will start drinking again and also that she has come to look for him without her husband's permission. Mrs. Elvsted leaves and Judge Brack arrives. Judge Brack brings gossip from town, most notably that Ejlert is quite a success and may be poised to take the position at the university that Tesman is counting on getting himself. He leaves, and Tesman tells Hedda that they will have to cut back on their expenses. Written by Henrik Ibsen.