An Enemy of the People

Joe Cobden in An Enemy of the People. Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.

“An unbelieved truth can hurt a man much more than a lie. It takes great courage to back truth unacceptable to our times. There's a punishment for it, and it's usually crucifixion.” ― John Steinbeck, East of Eden

The truth is inconvenient and downright ugly in Florian Borchmeyer's adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's An Enemy of the People, now on stage in a new production directed by Richard Rose at Tarragon Theatre.

The story centres around a small tourist town where the local baths are the primary source of the community's prosperity. When Doctor Thomas Stockmann (Joe Cobden) makes a shocking discovery—that the water is contaminated with industrial waste—the town's livlihood becomes a moral dilemma, and his politician brother Peter (Rick Roberts) is hell bent on keeping the news covered up.

We first meet Thomas Stockmann, a family man, at home with his wife Katharina (Tamara Podemski) and their new baby. He is friends with the local press, newspaper Editor-in-Chief Hovstad (Matthew Edison) and his reporter Billing (Brandon McGibbon), who play with Thomas and Tamara in a band for fun. When Thomas comes home with proof about the town's water supply, Hovstad is excited to break the story to the world, sticking it to the local powers that be in the name of justice. That is until his publisher Aslaksen (Tom Barnett) and Thomas's brother Peter chime in with their concerns about what the news would mean for all of them in the town. Thomas' status quickly goes from hero to public enemy as fear and greed convince his peers that he is out to destroy them.

The headstrong Thomas is determined to follow through, however, and he calls a town hall meeting at which all of the concerned parties are present. Much to our surprise and delight, the audience becomes involved at this point, as members of the cast stand amoung us, and the house lights are turned up for a lively debate. Here, Stockmann delivers a stirring speech about the dangers of majority rule that ultimately draws the wrath of everyone close to him, including his factory owner father-in-law Kill (Richard McMillan).

Featuring a top-notch cast, contemporary live music, and a clever set with blackboard walls designed by Michelle Tracey, this modern take on Ibsen's classic tale of truth-telling is sure to raise your blood pressure, in a good way. Shedding light on issues such as censorship, environmental crises, social apathy, and political corruption, An Enemy of the People is a definite must-see this season. Kudos to Tarragon for bringing this relevant adaptation to Toronto, just in time for the upcoming mayoral election.

An Enemy of the People runs until October 26 at Tarragon Theatre. Visit tarragontheatre.com for more information and to buy tickets.

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