On Saturday 7 September, the production of “Kvit, norsk mann” premieres. The performance tells, among other things, about parishioner Arve Beheim Karlsen, who on 23 April 1999 was chased over a footbridge while his peers shouted “Kill that negro”. The following Monday, the 17-year-old was found drowned in Sogndalselva. Two young people were acquitted of violating the racism clause, but convicted of violence and threats in the Beheim Karlsen case. Photo: 12anivik / 12anivik Agenda X, the youth department of the Antiracist Centre, is one of the groups that were invited to provide feedback ahead of the premiere. Head of department Knut Hagen says the reactions were aimed at the scene about Arve Beheim Karlsen. – Several of them felt unsafe. They felt that it became a room that was not for them. – Should the stage be for everyone, or should it be for a selection of the population who can recognize themselves and learn from that history? By using that rhetoric, you close the room to part of the audience. Director Maren E. Bjørset says they have taken the feedback seriously. Photo: Gunnar Bratthammer / news Director Maren E. Bjørset says the use of the n-word took the focus away from what they want to say with the performance. – We are very clear that this is a word we don’t want to use in everyday speech, and suddenly it didn’t fit on stage either. – The story of Arve Beheim Karlsen is so strong anyway, and it stands without the shock effect of that word, she adds. – There is no doubt about which word we are talking about. In the performance, the sentence now stops after “Kill the …”. – I think we have managed to find a scenic translation where the seriousness of the story is clearly conveyed. I don’t think there is any doubt about which word it is, even if we don’t say it out loud in the performance. That’s what lead actor Huy Le Vo says. Lead actor Huy Le Vo says there is no doubt about which word it is. Photo: Gunnar Bratthammer / news – It has been important to me that we do not exercise that violence time and time again, and push away audiences with whom we really want to be in dialogue, he says. – Do you pay too much attention to those who feel violated? – We must be aware of the premises on which we tell stories, and then you cannot, as a privileged person, go in and carry out that violence night after night. Difference between theater and book – It is important to take seriously that the n-word is painful and traumatic for many. And it is important that you are not inflicted with new traumas by watching this performance, which has an anti-racist purpose. That’s what Brynjulf Jung Tjønn says, who has written the poetry collection of the same name. Brynjulf Jung Tjønn thinks it is right that the n-word is removed from the play. Photo: Alem Zebic In his book, the quote is printed in full: “Kill that negro”. Tjønn says there is a big difference between watching a play and reading a book. – When you sit and watch the theatre, you are in a way locked in a bit, in contrast to reading a book. You can close a book, be alone with the experience, and do research to put things in context. For the same reason, he himself has stopped using the n-word when he reads to school classes. – I don’t want to bring this word into the classroom. Rather, they get a teacher who they are confident in doing, who also puts this poem in a larger context. “Kvit, norsk mann” premieres at Vega Scene in Oslo on Saturday 7 September. Photo: Gunnar Bratthammer / news Thinks art should be able to arouse emotions Knut Hagen from Agenda X thinks the n-word should be avoided in all contexts, including in art. – Art must be protected to a certain extent, but it can be done in a way that accommodates and spares everyone. Jesper Halle, professor of script at the Theater Academy, is skeptical that it should not be possible to use words that evoke negative feelings. Jesper Halle is professor of stage text at the Theater Academy Photo: Theater Academy – On a general basis, I think that it would be problematic if we got there that the encounter with art should not be able to trigger such emotions. He is nevertheless open to other opinions on the topic: – I have a hard time understanding how a single word can in itself trigger so much in you. But I am an older, white, Norwegian man. I think it’s strange, but I realize that these are things I know nothing about. – Maybe it is right to put in a “trigger warning” in some contexts, he adds. According to Halle, however, the most important thing is not to go against what Tjønn, as author and originator, thinks about the word being removed. – It sounds like it was right to remove that word from that performance. Quite simply, because then the performance can be understood for what it is, and read for what it is. Published 07.09.2024, at 17.45
ttn-69
Removes the n-word from the anti-racist “White, Norwegian man” production – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
