Enchantment, The

By Victoria Benedictsson
Adapted by Clare Bayley

Published alongside the National Theatre premiere of the mesmeric but little-known play by the woman who was reputedly a model for Miss Julie and Hedda Gabler.

One sunny day in Paris, Gustave Alland, famous artist and philanderer, visits Louise Strandberg - convalescing in her brother's studio - and casts her effortlessly under his spell. In a vain attempt to escape, she exiles herself to her provincial hometown in Sweden. But a letter propels her back to Paris and into his arms. And for a brief moment, ecstasy is hers...

'an extraordinary play... Clare Bayley's immaculate version is a major act of reclamation' Guardian

'Many thanks to Clare Bayley, who has unearthed and translated this fascinating play... an astonishingly mature work... a cry for equality that still resonates today' Times

Victoria Benedictsson, groundbreaking Swedish novelist and playwright, was reputedly the inspiration for Strindberg's Miss Julie and for Ibsen's Hedda Gabler. She had a scandalous affair which led to her suicide, soon after completing the play, in 1888.