THEATER FOR THE NEW CITY
Executive Director, Crystal Field
Presents
An Enemy of the People
By Henrik Ibsen
March 4, 2026 – March 15, 2026
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday at 8:00 PM, Sunday at 3:00 PM
Tickets – $20, Students & Seniors $15
Run time: 2 hours 30 minutes with a 15 intermission
JOHNSON THEATER
THEATER FOR THE NEW CITY
155 First Avenue (between 9th and 10th Street)
New York, NY 10003
Directions
In a small town that prospers from its celebrated public baths, Dr. Tomas Stockmann discovers that the water is contaminated. When he attempts to warn the public, he finds himself opposed by political interests, economic pressure, and the shifting will of the majority. As truth becomes inconvenient, the play asks who benefits from silence and what it costs to speak honestly.
CAST
Cora Riechert as The Mayor
Luna Vintner as Petra
Molly McDermott as Aslaksen
Nina Irene Becker as Katrine
Samantha Campbell as Captain Horster
Olivia Roselli as Hovstad
Johnny Gottsegen as Kiil
Lindsey Rae Root as Ejlif / Katrine (understudy)
Lauren Nicole Bryant as Morten
Jamie Lien as Billing
PRODUCTION
Director: Sanio Kurtesevic
Stage Manager: Zeynep Altinbas
Technical Director: Scotto Mycklebust
Stagehand/ Lighting: Avery Lovell
Stagehand/ Carpenter: Cherish Campos
About the Production
This staging of An Enemy of the People is a text-forward, ensemble-driven production rooted directly in Henrik Ibsen’s 1897 Norwegian second edition, the final version approved by the playwright. A new English translation was created specifically for this production, with punctuation, capitalization, and most stage directions removed, allowing the text to move as a continuous flow and placing responsibility for rhythm and meaning in the actors’ listening and interaction rather than on the page.
Casting & Tone
The production features a predominantly women-led ensemble, with women performing several traditionally male roles. This choice functions as a theatrical and tonal strategy. Ibsen’s language is dense and precise. By placing women in these roles, the production leans into the comedic potential embedded in the text, allowing contradiction, hypocrisy, and absurdity to surface with greater clarity. The approach draws inspiration from heightened satire and even the structural clarity of an SNL-style sketch while remaining fully truthful to the original language.