Laura Kieler inspired the character Nora Helmer in A Doll's House. She wrote to Henrik Ibsen for help with a financial scandal involving an illegal loan to save her husband Victor from tuberculosis. Victor divorced Laura and had her committed to an asylum after discovering the secret.
A Doll's House opened at the Royal Danish Theatre on the 21st of December 1879. The production featured Betty Hennings as Nora and Emil Poulsen as Torvald. Every performance during its initial run sold out completely.
An edition of 8,000 copies of A Doll's House was published in Copenhagen on the 4th of December 1879. This first edition sold out within a single month. A second edition of 3,000 copies followed on the 4th of January 1880.
Hedwig Raabe refused to perform A Doll's House because she declared that she would never leave her children. Since copyright laws did not protect Ibsen's work, he wrote an alternative ending where Nora stayed home for productions like the one in Flensburg in February 1880.
The 1973 film version of A Doll's House directed by Joseph Losey starred Jane Fonda. Another 1973 version directed by Patrick Garland featured Claire Bloom and Anthony Hopkins. These films modernized the story from the original 1879 play.