About

Lighthouse keeper's daughter Ellida is a troubled woman. Obsessed with the sea, she yearns for the freedom it represents - in contrast to her dull marriage in a remote part of Norway.

She has a strained relationship with her two step-daughters and out of concern for her mental health, her husband has invited a former suitor to stay with her.

But it's from another visitor that she learns by chance of a shipwrecked sailor - with whom she had a passionate affair years earlier and who still haunts her imagination. When the mysterious stranger does indeed return to claim her, both Ellida and her husband must make life-changing decisions - freedom to choose versus duty to family - security on land or escape out to sea.

Next Stage continues its artistic relationship with David Eldridge following the company's 2023 production of Eldridge's Beginning. In The Lady from the Sea, this talented playwright explores all of Ibsen's intriguing themes in a fresh and vibrant translation. The production is directed by Bob Constantine (The Herd 2025), with a highly experienced Next Stage cast bringing to life this moody, unsettling story.