When We Dead Awaken

In his final play, Henrik Ibsen tells the story of Rubek, an aging sculptor who has lost all interest in the world around him. In spite of his wealth, his fame, and the attentions of his beautiful, young wife, he can find no joy in his existence. He is stagnating, trapped in a spiritual vacuum, when suddenly he is jolted out of his stupor by an unexpected reunion with Irene, a model who once posed for him and whom he idolized. She is now half-mad and literally believes herself to be a walking corpse, a dead woman who roams the earth. In spite of her delusions, however, and in spite of his marriage, Rubek woos the disturbed woman mercilessly. He believes that, together, he and Irene can make each other whole. He will cure her of her delusions of death, and she will restore in him the joy of life. Irene eventually agrees to allow Rubek a few moments of real happiness. She will spend one final night with him ... but there is a terrible price to be paid.