Janne Teller’s youth novel “Ingenting” (Danish: “Nothing”) has had a remarkable spread since its publication in 2000. The book was hardly noticed when it was published, somewhat reluctantly on the part of the publisher. Two years later, it won Denmark’s most prestigious award for children’s and youth literature. Then the snowball started rolling. And it is still rolling, with ever greater momentum. It has now been translated into 30 languages, and has sold over a million and a half copies. Tens of thousands of school pupils and university students have had “Nothing” on their syllabus. At the same time, many schools and bookshops have banned the book, due to its partly extreme action. The Norwegian theater version won the Hedda prize for best youth theater in 2019. The opera version, which is now being performed in Bjørvika, has become a performance that makes an impression – whether you are 14 or 49. GLOW MESSAGE: Pierre confronts his reluctant fellow students with the fundamental meaninglessness of life. Photo: Erik Berg / Den Norske Opera & Ballett Youth against the sense of meaning Janne Teller’s novel can be characterized as a kind of modern “Lord of the Flies”. It explores basic existential questions within the framework of a social experiment. The action begins at the start of a new school year, where class 8D gathers after the holidays. The atmosphere is bustling and expectant. The idyll is broken when the student Pierre climbs a plum tree and declares that nothing matters. From here the action is a continuous downward spiral. To disprove Pierre’s gloomy claim, the class gathers in a disused sawmill. Here the young people begin to sacrifice important things, in a growing “pile of meaning”. It all starts innocently with “Star Wars” effects, bracelets and sunglasses, but quickly spirals out of control as the victims become increasingly intrusive and abusive. DARKNESS: “The heap of meaning” becomes more and more macabre as the action in “Nothing” progresses. Photo: Erik Berg / Den Norske Opera & Ballett Virginity, body parts and sacred symbols are sacrificed. Dead little brothers are dug up from the cemetery. The ending in no way gives any hope for the future. Most of all, “Nothing” is a gloomy portrait of human nature, and of how the pursuit of “the good” can degenerate into mass hysteria and sadism. Clichéd music The opera version of “Nothing” is British, and was staged for the first time at the Glyndebourne Festival in 2016. The version in Bjørvika is a co-production with the Royal Theater in Copenhagen, where it premiered in 2020. An opera version must necessarily sacrifice a good part of the original’s richness of action and formal complexity. Librettist Glyn Maxwell has, among other things, chosen to remove some of the most religiously inflamed action moments from the book. The result does not, however, appear as a watered-down version of Teller’s novel. There are violent things that unfold on stage in this performance. The music, composed by David Bruce, however, I am not quite so enthusiastic about. The craftsmanship is certainly impeccable. The music moves efficiently and organically from large and rhythmically suggestive chorus scenes to more introspective and lyrical numbers for the five main characters. The problem is that the music falls too far into sentimentality and well-known clichés, especially in some of the solo numbers. This weakens the effect of the direct and uncompromising emotionality on stage. EMOJI-O-RAMA: The smartphone aesthetic sometimes gets the better of Steffen Aarfing’s otherwise effective scenography. Photo: Erik Berg / Den Norske Opera & Ballett Powerful direction Despite the slightly too tame music, director Martin Lyngbo and his team have managed to create a powerful performance. Active use of lighting and video projection gives the performance a large visual range – from the vibrant colors to the black of night. Jannik Elkær’s choreography nicely balances ensemble precision and individual freedom. “Nothing” periodically has many young people on stage at the same time, but the performance is never experienced as chaotic. Steffen Aarfing’s scenography, on the other hand, is both simple and effective. The main attraction is a large rotating wall that functions both as a sawmill backdrop and as a video-projected background for the scenes where Pierre’s plum tree forms the foreground. Much of the text is written along the way in large letters on the back wall. This reinforces the effect of the direct language, and at the same time makes it easier to follow the action. However, it is clear that the directing team is concerned that Teller’s novel was written before the entry of smartphones into young people’s lives. Periodically, there will be a spasmodic number of video-projected emojis and choreographed mobile waving. STORSLAGENT: A three-digit number of gifted young people makes “Ingenting” a unique experience. Photo: Erik Berg / The Norwegian Opera & Ballet What a group on stage! It is most of all the young performers on stage and in the orchestra pit that make “Ingenting” a magnificent and moving evening in the capital’s magnificent marble building. The opera’s children’s choir numbers around 80 young people in this performance, while the opera orchestra has been expanded with 24 musicians aged 14-19. Together, they give the audience the unique experience of gifted youth giving everything they have on stage, because they sincerely – and rightly – believe they can make a difference. THE GANG LEADER: Mezzo-soprano Christina Jønsi makes a solid effort as the socially dominant Ursula. Photo: Erik Berg / Den Norske Opera & Ballet GLATT: Baritone Magnus Ingemund Kjelstad convinces as the national conservative daddy’s boy Karl. Photo: Erik Berg / Den Norske Opera & Ballet THE IDEALIST: The performance’s splash of color is the politically engaged Johan, who is sung with excess by countertenor Sean Bell. Photo: Erik Berg / Den Norske Opera & Ballett The main roles are performed by five young professional opera singers, most of them either current or former soloist trainees at Den Norske Opera og Ballett. Here there are consistently good vocal performances and credible portraits of the recognizable character types of youth. The two outsiders in class 8D make the biggest impression. The nihilistic and plum tree-climbing Pierre is sung with tormented intensity by tenor Simen Bredesen. Soprano Eline Korbi starts a bit cautiously, but gradually grows into the role of the sensitive and empathetic Agnes. The solo parts beyond the second act are sung with a simple fervor that really touches. MAKE AN IMPRESSION: Simen Bredesen (Pierre) and Eline Korbi (Agnes). Photo: Erik Berg / Den Norske Opera & Ballett Old, old men, across the board With such a solid effort on stage and from the orchestra pit, it’s a shame that “Nothing” doesn’t have an idiom that matches the pitch-black action that unfolds in Teller’s book. In particular, the fact that the music never really challenges is experienced as a paradox in an opera based on a novel that has reached out precisely because it dares to break boundaries. Now there’s obviously an elephant in the room here: the author of this review is a 49-year-old man. What do I know about what young people like today? But the critic’s age is not the only problem in that case. This performance’s composer, librettist, director, scenographer and choreographer are all well-grown men, a couple of them well on their way to retirement age. One of the few glaring exceptions is the costume designer, who is a woman under 40. Not sure that matters, but maybe worth mentioning. news reviews Photo: Erik Berg / Den Norske Opera & Ballett Title: “Nothing” Place: Den Norske Opera og Ballett Date: 3 November–21. november Music: David Bruce Libretto: Glyn Maxwell, based on the award-winning young adult novel by Janne Teller Musical direction: David Maiwald Director: Martin Lyngbo Re-staging director: Ludivine Petit and Dina Fie Lorentzen Scenography: Steffen Aarfing Norwegian translation: Gunnar Bergstrøm Costumes: Nathalie Mellbye Lighting designer: Lee Curran Video design: Anne Mette Fisker Langkjer and Maya SB Cast: Eline Korbi as Agnes Simen Bredesen as Pierre Sean Gordon Bell as Johan Magnus Ingemund Kjelstad as Karl Christina Jønsi as Ursula Cast: Children’s Choir and Opera Orchestra
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“Nothing” at the Norwegian Opera and Ballet – Reviews and recommendations
