A few hundred meters from the racing boats in the Arendal Water Festival is Kulturkjerka. A tired building that now houses Agder Nye Teater’s staging of the Jon Fosse play “I’m the wind”. In case you were wondering: You read that right. Jon Fosse in Bokmål. More on that later. This year’s coolest stage curtain Agder Nye Teater has distinguished itself with fearless, innovative presentations. One of the first things they did was stage “Mother and child” by Fosse, a heartbreaking play about a grown man who seeks out his mother, he wants to know why she left him when he was little. The play was performed in a closed (but not emptied) pram shop, and the audience sat on the outside and received the lines through ear bells. The ear clocks are also included in the Kulturkjerka. The acoustics in the room make it a good idea, but even then the text can sometimes be difficult to follow. AT A PAINTING STATION: Laura Spottag Fog (top) and Sunniva Du Mond Nordal (bottom) sleeping at a painting studio. In the picture, you can see different layers stacked on top of each other. Set designer is Amale Larsen. Photo: Simen Thornquist / Agder Nye Teater From where I sit in the gallery I look down on what must be the coolest stage carpet of the year – a painting that fills the entire stage floor. You see the world from a bird’s eye view, and scenographer Amale Larsen has painted a home with different rooms: bathroom, living room, bedroom. The table is covered with a large, painted canvas, cleverly done with a new layer of canvas laid on top of the large painting – net like a canvas. It gives a dimensional materiality. The same can be said about the rags in the house, also painted on their own canvas with gracefully knotted fringes. On top of all this: plates, glasses, storm kitchen, flower vases. The stage carpet is innovative and spectacular. But it doesn’t quite come into its own in the way it is used in the foresight. It could have set the premises more clearly than it does now. WHITE: A large, white installation becomes a central part of the stage image in “Jeg er vinden”. He takes up a lot of space without having a clear function. Here: Laura Spottag Fog as The Other. Photo: Agder Nye Teater In addition, there will be a large, white installation, a kind of giant balloon, floating above the stage. From where I sat, this took the focus away from the footballers without me fully understanding why. Freakingly liberating “I’m the wind” is about The one (Laura Spottag Fog) and The other (Sunniva Du Mond Nordal). One has taken his own life, thrown himself into the sea, and the other is left with grief and a lot of questions. The play allows the two to meet each other, the distinction between dream and reality is blurred. One is still dead, but the Other gets to ask, and the One tempts to answer. FULL OF QUESTIONS: One is dead. Back is Den andre (Sunniva Du Mond Nordal) and is full of questions. Jon Fosse lets her set them in “I’m the wind”. Photo: Simen Dieserud Thornquist / Agder Nye Teater At the same time, they have great experiences as a team, they go out with the boat, anchor, drink and cook. Before the one saw the course straight into the storm, threw himself overboard and disappeared, leaving the other alone. And the other, who has never steered a boat before, has to get home in the chaos. In the church ship (as it is aptly called) the bed in the bedroom is painted like the bow of a boat. Jon Fosse writes subdued and open, there is little guidance in the text, which gives the direction great freedom. Director Magnus Sparsaas uses that freedom to give Den andre a large space. Laura Spottag Fog is calm, determined, settled when it comes to jumping on the lake. Sunniva Du Mond Nordal gets to play out a spectrum of feelings connected to handling the loss. I like that the bereaved can take their place, can rage and shout and despair, can be powerful when she needs to. In this way, the consequences of the suicide are given the greatest place. A strong and riveting ending confirms this. This is how “I am the wind” feels liberating on behalf of the person who stands still. Last week there was news of a high number of drownings in Norway. Cases about a lower alcohol limit at sea have been debated. In addition, the suicide rate is alarmingly high in Norway. “I am the wind” contains all this in a way. Jon Fosse and Agder Nye Teater are spot on. Confirming hope When Jon Fosse received the Nobel Prize in Literature, he spoke in the Nobel lecture about an uneasiness he had had: “There are several suicides in my poetry. More than I like to think about. I have been afraid that in this way I may have helped legitimize suicide,” he said. Agder Nye Teater balances this nicely. For example, in the lighting, where there is always a light to reach for, a lantern to grope towards, Ingeborg Staxrud Olerud’s lighting confirms hope. LIGHTS AND MUSIC: Flutist Johanna Scheie Orellana accompanies the two characters musically throughout the projection. Behind: Lighting design by Ingeborg Staxrud Olerud. Photo: Simen Dieserud Thornquist / Agder Nye Teater So it is not the same to hear Fosse in Bokmål as in Nynorsk. As literature, it is clearly best in the original language, but Fosse’s theater publisher is open to performances in all languages, as they say. It works fine here, in Austland dialect and Danish. But the text takes on a different colour. A bit like Ibsen in Nynorsk. “I am the wind” is symbolic, furious and hopeful at the same time. The stage carpet is beautiful, but I say that with the feeling of untapped potential. It’s a strong and liberating experience all the same. news reviews Photo: Simen Thornquist / Agder Nye Teater Title: “Jeg er vinden” By: Jon Fosse At: Agder Nye Theater Location: Kulturkjerka, Arendal Playing: Until 10 August 2024 Director: Magnus Sparsaas Actors: Sunniva Du Mond Nordal and Laura Spottag Fog Flute: Johanna Scheie Orellana Scenography: Amale Larsen Lighting design: Ingeborg Staxrud Olerud Choreography: Kristin Ryg Helgebostad Sound design: Jørgen Iden Tveit Producer Theis Irgens Graphic design: Carl Lützen Lighting technique: Simon Meyer Tallaksen Published 05.08.2024, at 12.05
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“I am the wind” at Agder Nye Teater – Reviews and recommendations
