I’ve just been down in the rehearsal room where Massenet’s hero Werther has been dying since 10:00 this morning.
Tilgang er ikke nok. Mangfold krever bevissthet – helt i toppen av den nasjonale kulturledelsen.
Diversity, quality and leadership – Click here for English version Jeg foreslår at vi tar et dypdykk i det norske oljefondet. «Vi former våre bygninger, deretter former de oss», skal Winston Churchill ha sagt. Hvem bygningene finnes til for og hvordan de skal administreres, er en aktuell og viktig diskusjon over hele Europa. Her i […]
Pandas, politics and performance
Some years back, when Stavanger2008, European Capital of Culture was still glowing from its appraisal as ‘best artistic programme ever’ I gave a speech at one of Edinburgh´s universities, where a bunch of exceedingly sparky students bombarded me with alarmingly smart questions. Some days later, a very fine certificate arrived, a masterpiece of exotic fonts […]
Smart with a Heart
I was asked to speak at NORDIC EDGE : ‘The largest smart city arena in the Nordics’. The 2018 theme was Smart with a Heart. Here´s what I said….
Knit your own opera
A gentle rhythmic clicking floats from the doors as though some dreamy animal is tapping its teeth. Sailors need jumpers, and the BNO staff knitters are hard at work.
Future sounds from Bergen
Oslo, minus several degrees, the landscape monochrome with luminous streaky skies. Bergen National Opera is in the capital at Operaen with a fine mix of nationalities and three Nordic composers to develop new operas for premiere in March.
Otello the Outsider
Verdi from two centuries past: opera at its most raw and modern
Witches and Wonderland
In Os´s spectacular fjord-side culture house, a witch with a long silver tail is dancing with a bloody saw and cackling horribly. Hansel is trapped on top of a hospital trolley and Gretel is hiding behind lurid pink boxes. Welcome to the opera! Bergen National Opera is rehearsing Humperdinck´s wonderful work for all ages, a […]
Händel and Humanity
In Grieghallen´s basement rehearsal room, figures in tattered grey sing Händel as they shuffle towards a table where soup is ladled from a vast battered pot. The scene is bleak. We are in Ireland – or it could be Norway – in some kind of timeless misery with freezing weather and famine, where the country´s distant officials have long ceased to care, and where the church is struggling between old-school hell-fire authority and its need to offer succour.
Il turco in Norwegia
Welcome to Il Turco in Italia directed by American opera supremo Mark Lamos – a riotous combination of highly sophisticated ensemble, fabulous arias, touching moments and carefully choreographed mayhem.
