Helene Alving has spent her life suspended in an emotional void after the death of her cruel but outwardly charming husband. She is determined to escape the ghosts of her past by telling her son, Oswald, the truth about his father.

But on his return from his life as a painter in France, Oswald reveals how he has already inherited the legacy of Alving’s dissolute life.

Lesley Manville leads the cast as Helene in Richard Eyre’s new adaptation of Ibsen’s play. One of Britain’s most respected actresses, Lesley Manville was last seen on stage in the National Theatre’s 2012 production of Grief. Her recent screen credits include BBC’s May Day and the Mike Leigh film Another Year, for which she won numerous awards.

Eyre’s most recent production for the Almeida was last year’s acclaimed The Dark Earth And The Light Sky. He previously directed Hedda Gabler in 2005, which he also adapted. His recent stage productions include Quartermaine’s Terms (Wyndham’s theatre) and The Pajama Game (Chichester Festival Theatre).