BABYLON, NY — It has long been hailed as the “female Hamlet.” Since its shocking premiere in 1891, Henrik Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler has stood as a towering monument of literary realism and psychological suspense. Now, Modern Classics Theatre Company of Long Island is bringing this chilling study of power, control, and isolation to the BACCA Arts Center for a limited engagement running from May 16th through May 31st, 2026.

For a regional theatre scene often dominated by standard commercial revivals, this production marks a bold step forward. True to its mission as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, Modern Classics focuses strictly on bringing vital, complex works seldom produced on Long Island directly to the local community. At the helm of this ambitious endeavor is director and visual architect John Emro, who views the 135-year-old masterpiece not as a historical artifact, but as an urgent mirror to the modern human condition.

The Universal Anatomy of a Gilded Cage

On paper, Hedda Gabler is the story of a General’s aristocratic daughter trapped in a suffocating 19th-century marriage to a middle-class academic, George Tesman. Appalled by the domestic banality of her new life, Hedda begins a dangerous game of psychological manipulation with the people in her orbit. Ibsen famously used her maiden name for the title, writing:

“My intention in giving it this name was to indicate that Hedda as a personality is to be regarded rather as her father’s daughter than her husband’s wife.”

For Director John Emro, the historical setting is merely the backdrop for timeless human crises that resonate deeply in 2026.

“The themes of the play are completely pertinent to today,” Emro explains. “It’s a ride into someone’s psyche and touches upon things that are universally experienced—manipulation, blackmail, unfulfilled desires, and the intense struggles with mental health, love, and success. Hedda is a woman carrying massive dreams that she wasn’t able to realize. That conflict, those inner struggles and demons, are things everyone experiences on some level today. How she deals with that cage is what makes the drama so immediate.”

The Director’s Vision: Visual Architecture and Psychological Depth

John Emro isn’t just a director pulling strings from the wings; he is a foundational architect of Modern Classics’ aesthetic and logistical identity. Frequently pulling double duty behind the scenes—such as recently co-creating the labyrinthine scenic design for the company’s hit run of Sandy Rustin’s Clue—Emro brings a distinct spatial sensibility to Ibsen’s text.

For Hedda Gabler, Emro treats the stage layout at the BACCA Arts Center not merely as a decorative 19th-century parlor, but as a physical manifestation of Hedda’s mental imprisonment. His dual perspective as a visual designer and an actor’s director allows him to utilize the physical architecture of the space to amplify the claustrophobia of the “gilded cage.”

Furthermore, Emro’s background as a core producer for the company shapes his directorial philosophy through a deep commitment to ensemble accountability and strict text fidelity. Rather than micro-managing performances or relying on standard melodrama, Emro establishes a clear, shared conceptual vision from day one, allowing the cast to expose the raw, subterranean friction required of literary realism.

Finding Hedda in the Silence

To carry a psychological tour de force of this magnitude, a director needs a lead actor capable of brilliant subtlety. Emro found his ideal protagonist in Elle Lucksted, who commands the stage in the titular role. According to Emro, Lucksted’s brilliant approach to the character was evident from her very first audition, anchored not by what she said, but by what she held back.

“During the audition process, Elle was able to portray the deep, inner thinking of the character without actually saying anything,” Emro notes. “I could see Hedda’s distinct personality right there in her. She possesses a striking capacity for introspection, which is absolutely fundamental for this role. It really came through.”

Lucksted anchors a powerhouse ensemble that maps out the play’s intricate, toxic social hierarchy:

• Paul DeFilippo as George Tesman, her oblivious academic husband
• Renatto Corneja as Eilert Lovborg, the brilliant, volatile visionary from her past
• Alexa Roosevelt as Thea Elvstead, a woman brave enough to defy convention
• Joe Cavagnet as Judge Brack, the cold, calculating voice of societal leverage
• Candace Wilkerson as Aunt Julia, the embodiment of domestic expectation
• Erica Jeudy as Berte, the watchful household maid

Reimagining Power Dynamics Through Non-Traditional Casting

A cornerstone of Modern Classics Theatre Company’s identity is its radical commitment to diversity, inviting actors of all ethnicities, gender identities, and orientations to reshape classic narratives. For this production, Emro leaned heavily into a color-blind casting philosophy, discovering that it naturally enhanced the script’s underlying commentary on power.

“We always cast the people who are exactly right for the roles regardless of their color, race, or ethnicity,” says Emro. “Everyone has an equal chance, and this cast proves it—these were simply the best actors for the job. Embracing a color-blind cast adds an incredibly fresh, modern dynamic to the room, but it crucially does not take away from the sharp message that Ibsen originally wrote. If anything, it highlights how universal these power struggles are.”

By deliberately passing over highly commercial, over-produced regional titles, Emro has solidified Modern Classics as a vital, disruptive force in the local arts scene, proving that suburban audiences crave deep, psychological text work. Hedda Gabler promises to be a standout theatrical event of the season—a psychological thriller that forces us to look squarely at our own modern cages.

Performance Details

• What: Henrik Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler
• Presented By: Modern Classics Theatre Company of Long Island
• Director: John Emro
• When: May 16 – May 31, 2026
• Where: BACCA Arts Center, 149 N. Wellwood Ave, Babylon, NY 11704
• Tickets: Available now through the BACCA Box Office.