Hedda

Finally, I’m being brave.

London, 1948. The war is over, India is newly independent, and Hedda Gabler has retired: early, elegantly, and with secrets. Once a Hollywood star, now the wife of rising British film director George Tesman, Hedda lives in Chelsea, hiding behind drawn curtains. But the past is beginning to stir.

An old friend has written a screenplay that cuts too close to the truth. And there’s a powerful producer in town who never takes no for an answer.

Inspired by the story of screen legend Merle Oberon, Hedda is a bold new version of Henrik Ibsen’s classic drama about blackmail, secrecy and power.

Written by Tanika Gupta (Tupperware of Ashes) this edition was published to coincide with the Orange Tree Theatre production in October 2025, directed by BAFTA-winning director Hettie Macdonald (Normal People) and starring Pearl Chanda (I May Destroy You) in the title role.

Over the past 25 years, Tanika Gupta has written over 25 stage plays that have been produced in major theatres across the UK and has written extensively for BBC Radio drama. Some of her theatre credits include: A Doll’s House (Lyric Hammersmith); Lions And Tigers (Globe Theatre); The Empress (Royal Shakespeare Company); and Wah! Wah! Girls - A British Bollywood Musical (Sadler’s Wells). In 2008 Tanika was awarded an MBE for Services to Drama and in 2016 was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.