Lanesboro theater receives international recognition

Henrik Ibsen
Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen.
Public domain archival photo

The Commonweal Theatre in Lanesboro has won a prestigious international award for its contribution to playwright Henrik Ibsen's legacy.

Henrik Ibsen is known as the father of modern theatre. Only four Scholarships for International Ibsen Projects were awarded by the Norwegian government. The Commonweal gets $46,000 with the award.

Commonweal church
The view from the stage in the Commonweal Theater in Lanesboro.
MPR photo/Sea Stachura

Artistic Director Hal Cropp said the money will go toward expanding the Commonweal's Ibsen Festival.

"The great long term thing for me and for the company is the ability to get to know, and to begin to have conversations with the Norwegian National Theatre, and explore the possibility of getting the Commonweal to go over there and them to come over here on an exchange," Cropp said.

This year the Commonweal will stage Ibsen's Hedda Gabler in April. The company tours the show across Minnesota in late March.

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