THEM: A full house!!

FULL HOUSE!!!!! This was incredible. Thank you so much everyone who came and saw us yesterday. WHAT A POWERFUL GROUP OF AUDIENCES. We are filled with all sorts of emotions today. Grateful, happy, excited and tender. Few tears have fallen, we have to admit. But this piece has been in process for 7 fu***** years! That really is something. And to be finally able to perform in Tjarnarbíó for a full house was just something that is hard to describe in words.

Thank you Tjarnarbíó for having us. Thank you Reykjavík Fringe Festival for having us again. Thank you for the trust and for believing in this project that is so important to us. Our heart is beating for this performance. What an incredible journey it has been. From an idea Anna Korolainen Crevier told us about at Tjarnarbíó when we were finishing another performance in 2015… to beginning to work on it in 2016.

Thousands of meetings online, taking interviews with men here and there and everywhere, thousands of hours to transcribe and read over material. Meeting in Finland to go over the material and workshop. Many more meetings online. Hundreds of hours put into funding applications. Getting NO NO NO NO and more NO from grants. Almost giving up. Still having hope and this strong belief in this project. Getting a little yes for a funding. Working with a fantastic writer, Minerva Pietilä.

Photo by Anna Maggy. Design by Louis Crevier.

Meeting in Iceland and travelling all the way to Höfn to test out the material we had at Mikró Festival. Getting wonderful feedback from audiences there. Feeling hopeful again. Travelling to Finland to workshop and perform at Viirus Teater. Getting fantastic feedback from audiences. Feeling hopeful again and wanting to continue this exploration. Really believing that we had something remarkable. Getting a YES from Tjarnarbíó til perform there. Workshopping in Iceland. Getting a NO from funding that prevented us to perform at Tjarnarbíó. Almost giving up! Getting a hint of hope again. Applying for more funding, more opportunities, leading a workshop, finding other possibilities. Starting a podcast. More applications, more meetings, more decisions to make. More people to speak with and ask for collaboration. More NO’s and other no’s and then deciding that we could do a small scale performance at Reykjavík Fringe Festival in 2020. YES! Then COVID! NO!

Photo by Anna Maggy. Design by Louis Crevier.

Finding a solution. Making a film version out of the material. Working oversea with fantastic people. Showing at Reykjavík Fringe Festival in 2020. Receiving an award. Feeling hopeful and strong again. More funding applications…

AND WE GOT A YES!!!!! There it is. It is right there. A nice number that could lift this performance to the level we believe it deserves and can become. Finding all the amazing people to work with with open calls. Meeting all these wonderful applicants that we hope to work with in the future. Beginning a collaboration with all the amazing power women to work with for this final version of THEM. Thank you for joining us!!! We would never be here without you. WHAT A TEAM!

Beginning a new journey…. and here we are. Finally. Two preview performances at Dansverkstæðið. Meeting in London and performing at Jacksons Lane and developing the performance even more. Meeting again in Reykjavík and developing it even further. A piece is never fully ready! We will continue discovering... but now with audiences. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

It is time to start a new chapter - we can call it chapter 10 maybe (until we find a better name) and this chapter will be filled with performances and possibly workshops related to the way we worked on this performance. We still have one more performance at Reykjavík Fringe Festival on 2nd July and then we will travel to Gothenburg in September to perform at Trixter Teater… after that we will be back at Tjarnarbíó and then…well... we will find out.

— Bergdís Júlía

Iðnó bursting with laughter, tears and goosebumps

After more than two years of developing We’ll Dance on the Ash of the Apocalypse, with:
- one residency in New York’s Dixon Place where the premiere was cancelled due to it being in March 2020
- a pivot to a Covid virtual run in English at Reykjavík Fringe Festival 2020 with the American cast
- a beautiful Icelandic translation by Urður Norðdahl made in 2021
- a six week long winter workshop with the Icelandic cast, translator and composer in 2021-22
- a staged reading cancelled at the Library of Hafnarfjörður but pivoted to a virtual staged reading in 2022 due to the Omacron boom
- a lack of funding for two years (we probably sound depressing with a play about global warming and political turmoil in times of global warming viruses and political turmoil!) only giving us two weeks of intensive rehearsals before our Reykjavík Fringe Festival 2022 run…
- …where I got Covid four days before premiere……!

But! Somehow….! It all sparked into magic last night at beautiful Iðnó where the atmosphere was filled with joy, anticipation, laughter, tears and goosebumps. I myself kept a distance due to my Covid out of respect to our audiences’ health, but was inundated by beautiful messages of support and praises and pictures of the filled seating at the intimate venue, and tonight: we’re set to be sold out.

This is not how I envisioned watching the final run through…! #Covid

I’m so proud. Although I am heartbroken — absolutely shattered, not to be able to be there myself to join in the celebration and reward after all this hard work for two years — I’ve been so warm seeing the other women in my theatre company step up and help with everything needed: Speaking volume checks? Urður! Fine tuning and okaying the lighting? Marjo! Cues for the actors on their entrances? Marjo and Anna! Photographing rehearsals? Anna brought in her talented husband Louis! Adding extra seating? Anna, Tinna and Marjo! Creating a buzz on social media? Outi! Knowing that you’re not alone, that your work is supported and will be in safe hands in its final push across the finish line is everything when something like this happens. Finding women who lift and empower you in this volatile industry is everything. And Spindrift is composed of some of the most hard working, empowering, funny, playful, joyful, resourceful, resilient, multi-talented women, who carry their moral compass at heart centre.

Photo by Louis Crevier. Featuring Bergdís Júlía Jóhannsdóttir and Arnar Hauksson in their role as the Young Couple.

“The chemistry between the actors!” “I had tears in my eyes!” “The laughter in the room!” These messages warm my heart so much, and I’m so proud of the story we’re telling, about global warming and women’s rights over their bodies. About taking action. That losing heart due to fear and exhaustion is alright, and how we must find the community of people who can patiently, gently but firmly lead us back to our values. That the fight for our future is never over. That we have the power to improve the lives around us. That there is hope, and action we can take.

The play is by Melissa-Kelly Franklin
Translation by Urður G. Norðdahl
Director Sólveig Eva Magnúsdóttir
Actors Bergdís Júlía Jóhannsdóttir and Arnar Hauksson
Radio Broadcaster Tinna Þorvalds Önnudóttir
Musician Hallvarður Ásgeirsson
Photographers Louis Crevier (Iðnó run) and Kristín Edda Gylfadóttir (R&D)
Filmographers Andrew Sim (Iðnó premiere) and Kristín Edda Gylfadóttir (R&D)
Lighting Designer and Technician Juliette Louste
Stage Hands Anna Korolainen Crevier and Marjo Lahti
Sponsors The Community Fund of Landsvirkjun and Composer Fund of RÚV and STEF

— Sólveig Eva

Reykjavík Fringe Festival

It’s been an eventful summer for the company. The spring started out in uncertainty for us, like everybody else. Sólveig was nearing premiere of We’ll Dance on the Ash of the Apocalypse in New York and Anna was about to leave Finland to join Bergdís and Tinna for rehearsals of Them in Iceland. Both productions were set to participate live at the Reykjavík Fringe Festival. Then a little something happened that blew all our plans out the window.

Them featuring Anna Korolainen Crevier, Bergdís Júlía Jóhannsdóttir and Tinna Þorvalds Önnudóttir.

Left with the choice to cancel everything or find another way through, we decided on the latter, and wound up adapting our two stage performances into video pieces. It was a challenging undertaking for the artists with a tight deadline but nonetheless an exciting opportunity to discover new ways of playing with the material.

These new discoveries lead the company towards a new direction, one we are sure to embrace for future productions. The transience of theatre is beautiful and its effect so immediate, but the permanence of this filmic devising process allows a further reach and different levels of intimacy. For theatre makers, it feels like a huge privilege not to be tied to a given location, but able to work across borders, reaching an international audience.

We’ll Dance on the Ash of the Apocalypse - featuring Léerin Campbell and Chris Nester.

Both pieces were well received and Them received The Nordic Network Fringe Award - which we are extremely proud of. It grants us access to all the Nordic Fringe Festivals next year.

In addition to our group performances, two members of the company had solo exhibitions. Sólveig showcased pages from her comic Space Mama Piggy which was published this month and is now showing at Stockholm Fringe Festival 15-19th September, and Tinna showed her watercolour paintings from her series Yes, Please.

Space Mama Piggy by Sólveig Eva.

With her superhuman strength and generosity of spirit Tinna received the award Spirit of the Fringe at the festival - proud, proud, proud we are!

We sincerely thank the wonderful producers of the Reykjavík Fringe for going ahead with the festival, safely through virtual acts and following health and safety protocols with local live performances. We are in awe of their management skills in these strange and difficult times. All that said we consider ourselves very lucky that we and our family were in good health during all this time, and we sincerely hope you, our reader, have been safe and supported during this pandemic.

Yes Please by Tinna Þorvalds Önnudóttir

We look forward to next year for more fringes, more creativity and opportunities.

- Anna Korolainen Crevier, Bergdís Júlía Jóhannsdóttir, Sólveig Eva and Tinna Þorvalds Önnudóttir.

Looking into the Masculine through a Feminine Lense

My mind is corrupted.

My mind thinks a protagonist and thinks a man.

My mind thinks a hero and thinks a man.

My mind thinks a doctor and thinks a man.

My mind thinks an artist and thinks a man.

My mind thinks a person and thinks a man

In a world dominated by the masculine, the feminine is often forgotten or lacks respect. Our mind has learned to live in the man’s world. It has practiced it and stretched it’s understanding until it hardly recognizes the female body it lives in. Is it possible to just be human in a world still dominated by the patriarchy, where the masculine receives more respect than the feminine and gender norms are preventing us from progressing? 

These thoughts in mind, we started working on “THEM” five years ago. We were so focused on training to act and think like men that we had forgotten our own gender, yet we had not explored masculinity as a trait. We were taught to think it was the norm, and it took us time and effort to start seeing the world through a feminine lense.

“THEM” is a feminist stage performance where we as a group of women dive into the concept of “masculinity”. We look at it from a feminine angle and feel how it manifests itself, both around and within them. Because masculinity, whether toxic or not, lives within all of us, regardless of gender.

The piece is based on dozens of interviews with men in the Nordic countries, about their experiences of masculinity and life in general, as well as intertwining our own stories and experiences of living in a world that is not designed for us.

We want to discuss masculinity and cultural concepts around manhood. We want to question our own attitudes and shine light to our own prejudices. We want to question why our society shapes our boys the way it does. We want to take a look at the positive and toxic sides of masculinity as well as make space for the feminine at the cost of the masculine.

”THEM” will re-premier as an R&D performance in Tjarnarbío and online on Saturday 11th July 2020 as part of Reykjavik Fringe.

“... but I just remembered when I saw my dad cry for the first time…and it was a very strange sound. He…he sounded strange, he didn’t sound like dad.”

“When I think about manhood I think about power. Men have power. This is true everywhere. I mean, of course there are powerful women, but power has a masculine quality. And often women can gain power by adopting those masculine qualities.”

– Anna, Tinna and Bergdis Julia

INTIMACY

We were in the middle of our rehearsals at Dixon Place in lower Manhattan when we received a call we had lost our rehearsal space. I started calling more venues to see what alternative options might be open to us at a short notice, meanwhile texts kept coming in from collaborators. “Do you think there will actually be a show?” It was March 13th, and no. There wasn’t a show, as over the course of the next few days the city went into a lockdown.

Together the city has since faced incredible changes. Inspiring revolutions, a multitude of protective measures to defend one another, speaking up and taking action against cruelty and oppression. The art that took over the streets and our feeds: murals, grafiti, music, poetry, photography, breathed fire under these necessary changes. For weeks in quarantine arts had been a resource for comfort and distraction through familiarity, humour and beauty. Now it was a powerful, aimed device. To inform, educate and inspire through beauty and emotive imagery.

When we got back to working on our play for Reykjavík Fringe Festival we knew we were working within a very different context than few weeks ago. We had a different medium in this time of social distancing. What had been a highly physical production, with long movement sequences and intimate choreography serving half the storytelling, was now an intimate zoom call between a young couple. Instead of seeing two bodies entwined on stage, now we as an audience were looking directly at the actors as if we were the recipients of their call, their words of love, their frustrated shouts. The actors’ inability to touch or comfort one another felt painfully familiar.

“Theatre is meant to reflect the times we are in, and suddenly Zoom, Facetime and other virtual channels have become the reality of our communication.”

It is the most intimate I have ever experienced theatre, and while we have limited time and resources to fully explore this new medium, I am very much hoping you join us at 3pm New York time, or join us 7pm Icelandic time at Hlemmur Square, on Monday July 6th, as we live stream our performance for Reykjavík Fringe Festival, followed by a Q&A with author Melissa-Kelly Franklin, director Sólveig Eva and assistant director Anne Windsland.

Press here for streaming link and information about the show.

PINK

This quote from our interviews with men about their gendered experiences really caught my attention. As a woman I can’t count the times I’ve thrown on clothing from the men in my life, but I struggle to remember a single occasion where a man put on one of mine without it being a giggly impulsive game or a joke.

My experience within the fashion industry is very limited, but I'm keen to understand why my garment would be reduced to an instrument of embarrassment when placed on the men in my life. 

Maybe it's because the fashion industry is focused on practicality and upscale uniformity for men while female attire is meant to flatter the figure, elevate beauty and express stylised ideas of her identity. Clothing that is designed to be beautiful rather than practical might therefore express that the man wanted to be admired, and announce him as a target for objectification. After all, we have been taught by our justice system and media that women's clothing is a welcome sign to harassment and abuse. 

Photo credit https://andreelliott.co/

I remember years ago a story circulating on social media about an Icelandic man who was shouted at and threatened for wearing floral pants on a stroll through the city centre. He was dumbfounded that an impulsive pattern choice had been perceived as a vocal political expression and compromised his safety.

Pants had innocently threatened the masculinity of Reykjavík's male population. It seems that masculinity in fact needs so much protection that a whole colour has been deemed off limits to men. While pink used to be perceived as a strong, decisive colour relating to red, the colour of blood and war, modern men tend to avoid it due to it being perceived as political statement or a submissive sign of femininity. 

This, and other personal accounts of men's gendered experiences is one of the reasons I so enjoy our project Them - A research and development production where we sat down with men to learn about how they experience their gender identity and how it impacts their daily life.

- Sólveig Eva

FOOTBALL AND FAITH

Summer was at its hottest in France, when I traveled here from Finland two weeks ago. I am working with a Franco-Finnish, Parisian company called Collectif Boxon Sentimental and together with the group we’ve been creating the first three-and-some parts of a performance that is planned to extend into eight parts in total, speaking of a taboo of our times: faith.

We spent one week in a residency in a small town called Nevers, building the first three parts of the performance, surrounded by 40 degrees heat and a herd of chicken. The weekend after, we shared the fruits of our work in Paris at an international theatre festival Rêves avant l’Aube, organised at Théâtre de Ménilmontant by director Matthew Bellon. The current week is dedicated to new scenes and musical and physical improvisation in an idyllic rehearsal space in Saint-Denis.

The mastermind behind our massive performance project called “Icônes” is a France-based, Finland-born director and theatre researcher from Sorbonne Nouvelle university, Carmen Kautto. Carmen has been planning the performance for years and is finally able to start putting her thoughts on paper - and on stage. Icônes speaks about the need to believe in something - let it be religion, ideology or love - and does so in the context of Russian history during the past 100 years, from the October revolution to our times. The performance is episodic, using physical theatre, live music, visual arts and both contemporary and classical texts as its material. Carmen has also written scenes for the piece and translated some original Soviet Blue Blouse sketch pieces, whose writers have been sent to the camps in Siberia during Stalin’s purges in the 20s. Additionally, texts of the piece vary from Tony Kushner’s modern writing to the grand classic of a Soviet Writer Leonid Zorin’s play as well as a turn-of the-century queer poet Zinaida Gippius’s work.

The piece is massive, but the building it in small pieces, showing one thing at the time and rehearsing couple of weeks at the time makes the task extremely enjoyable. As an actress, that gives the opportunity to learn your text between residencies and not to stress during an intensive week, as well as the freedom to improvise and create without needing to set things in stone during a single, 5-week rehearsal block.

Calm rehearsals and the warm wheather in Paris are topped up with the nights of football, where everyone gathers to support the French team on its way to the world cup’s final. It warms up my heart to see so many people on the streets together, and to be able to feel like part of a huge crowd supporting a group of professionals dear to them, being ready to give everything from themselves for the period of two hours per night, just because they are caught by a performance - on the field. Not so different to theatre.

Bisous! 

Anna Korolainen Crevier

IMPORTANCE OF FRINGES

Sólveig Eva drawing a mural during the Fringe Opening Party. Photo by Sveinlaug Sigurðardóttir. 

Creating art can be terribly expensive, both in terms of time donated, space and materials. Collaborative art forms such as theatre require continuous support networks of in-kind contributors alongside their fundraising and marketing efforts. 

Festivals bring a plethora of artists together from all over the world to provide diversity where it is needed, give free and affordable art to a community, create shared experiences, address political turmoil, refuel creativity and create acceptance and a sense of belonging. 

“There are no strangers at Fringe. Everyone is part of a family. People come from all over but you stand in a line at Fringe and within two minutes people ask you what play you have seen, what shows you have liked, what are you going to see next, and how long have you been Fringing?”

— Chuck McEwan, producer of Winnipeg Theatre Fringe Festival (KPBS Public Broadcasting)

Participants are strengthened through attracting their diverse audience groups together to one united platform, allowing artists to test their material with a wider range of spectators and giving their spectators a wider range of new experiences. This is aided by the fringe guidelines to keep ticket prices low, minimising the sense of risk and high stakes standard ticket prices so often instil in the buyer. Participating venues receive increased traffic while performers receive a stage. Fringes rely on grants to ensure that artists receive their revenue, and are therefore also an earning as well as marketing opportunity for artists. 

Fringes create a marketing and network opportunity for like-minded artists across disciplines. While local art circuits can be difficult for newcomers to penetrate, fringe performances tend to be chosen through a lottery, or a first-come-first-serve basis. It is a centre of creativity allowing for inspiration and encouragement, it’s a push forward in creativity and passion. And different from commercial entertainment, fringes do not censor. 

“I like to think of the Fringe as a mixing together of art forms on all levels or a party full of art. It’s an adventure for the audience members.”

— Nanna Gunnarsdóttir, Reykjavík Fringe Festival Director (Reykjavík Grapevine)

In addition to stimulating the economy with increased traffic to a range of events, workshops, gallery exhibitions, concerts, lectures, theatre, circus, burlesque, drag shows, stand ups, poetry slams, improvisations and happenings, storytelling is an essential part of human nature. It's an instinct that provides entertainment, guidance, tolerance, empathy, community. Storytelling is an instinctual companionship.

We want to thank Nanna Gunnarsdóttir and everyone who gave their time and energy to make the first Reykjavík Fringe a reality. We sincerely hope that Reykjavik Fringe Festival will receive the support they need to become an annual event.  

Reykjavík Fringe Festival takes place in venues around Reykjavík from the 4th-8th July. 

- Sólveig Eva

REYKJAVÍK FRINGE FESTIVAL

Sólveig Eva is currently participating in Reykjavík Fringe Festival 2018 with a gallery exhibition and live drawing at last night's Opening Party at Hlemmur Square. The atmosphere and talent at the opening was truly inspiring and we look forward to seeing this first fringe become an annual unmissable part of Reykjavik.  

For an interview with Sóla in Icelandic about her illustrations check out this article on Vísir.

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For more of Sóla's illustrations see www.solaevadraws.com

Video from the artist meet and greet at Iðnó Reykjavík July 1st. 

VIDEO THEM

Our trailer for Them by filmmaker Louis Crevier. 

TEATER VIIRUS HELSINKI 10-14TH OCTOBER

Spindrift Theatre is happy to announce Them will be visiting Helsinki at Teater Viirus 10 to 14 October.

We were inspired by, not the creators of, this photo

Them is a documentary-based theatre performance about men, interpreted by four women. The performance is based on interviews gathered from men living mainly in different parts of Europe and United States. Through physical expression and in the form of monologues four actresses dive into the world of men, exploring images of a masculinity and its affects on the experience of a modern man in Western society. The approach is empathic in attempting to understand the joys, sorrows and pains of manhood.

Them will be performed by founding members of Spindrift, Anna Korolainen and Bergdis Julia Johannsdottir, as well as Tinna Thorsvalds Önnudottir and Marjo Lahti. Other members of the crew are dramaturge is Minerva Pietilä, art director Louis Crevier, set designer Eva Björg Hardardottir, light designer Markus Alanen, sounder designer Kristian Pernilä and producer Suvi Nousiainen.

The monologues are performed in three languages: Finnish, English and Swedish.

Them in Helsinki:
10-14 October 2017 at 18:00 (6 PM)
Teater Viirus, Välimerenkatu 14
Tickets 15 € / 10 €

The performance will be further developed into its final form until May 2018. After every performance at Teater Viirus the audience is welcome to take part in brief discussions where they can share their thoughts and experiences on the play and its themes.

OPEN CALL

We're looking for a Finland-based producer to join our team for our next production Them. After the production premier there will be a possibility to continue as a permanent producer for the company.

Them is currently under development, and will premier with its research and development performances at the Reykjavik Fringe Festival in September and at Teater Viirus, Helsinki in October. After the autumn run the project will be further developed, and the final premier is planned for spring 2018 in Iceland/Finland.

The producer's main tasks are to work on funding applications together with the artistic directors of Spindrift Theatre, and take an active role in marketing and development of public relations in Finland, Iceland and the Nordic Countries. The producer should be familiar with the funding bodies of Finland and the Nordic countries. Fluent Finnish and English is required, and a fluency in another Nordic language is a definite plus.

We can offer a starting fee of 400 €, which should cover the part time work until the R&D performances in Autumn. We apologise for the small sum, but currently the company is working with a minimum budget. The producer will then apply for full project funding with the artistic directors, which will cover an official producer fee for her/his work on the performance.

If you're interested, please send us an email (spindrifttheatre@gmail.com) telling about your background, expertise and why you are willing to work with Spindrift Theatre. Please attach your CV as well. Deadline 17th July.

Looking forward to hearing from you!

- Anna and Bergdís

TJARNARBIO RESIDENCY REFLECTIONS

Our residency at Tjarnarbio is coming to an end. It's been a wonderful two weeks and something for us in Iceland, exploring the themes of our show, reading interviews, impersonating characters, improvising from scratch and talking about our personal relationship to the topic of the piece: men.

It's also been exhilarating to hear other people's take on our topic - both from men and women - and to look for an angle to bring these stories on stage. We have to acknowledge that we are women, right? But we have to present the male experience as authentically as possible.

A big point of development was travelling to Mikró festival in Lón, and "coming out" for the first time with some of our raw material. The audience's reactions and feedback was extremely valuable both in realising that people are actually interested in hearing these stories, and in noticing the moments where we didn't quite reach a dialogue with our spectators. Nothing beats live audience as a way of self-evaluation! 

After all, we are extremely happy about all the connections and plans for collaboration we've made here, working with the Nordic House and Tjarnarbio, and being in touch with our Finnish collaborators at Teater Viirus. We are also proud to welcome sound designer Kristian Pernilä and actress Marjo Lahti to our team! 

Next step will be our residency at Sláturhusid in August, where we'll incorporate video artist Louis Crevier to the rehearsal process.  We're also waiting impassionately for all the self tapes of our potential Icelandic actresses! Don't hesitate to apply!

We just wanna keep going! 

Pus pus!

- Anna

OPEN CALL

We're looking for an Iceland-based actress to join our team for our current production Them.

The rehearsals will take place in Sláturhusid, Egilstadir from 14th to 18th August and in Reykjavik from 21st August to 2nd September (can be flexible). The performances will be at the Reykjavik Fringe Festival in Tjarnarbio, taking place between 21st and 24th September. The performance text will be performed both in Icelandic and English, so good level in English is required.

We can offer a fee of 400 € which covers both the rehearsal period and the performance. Them will continue to develop as a performance project until 2018, when a bigger premier is due in Iceland and Finland. We hope that the actress would follow the development through with us, for which further funding will be applied.

If you're interested, please send us an email (spindrifttheatre@gmail.com) confirming your availability, and a maximum 5 minute video, where you introduce yourself and perform a monologue, poem or another dramatic text. Deadline 15th July.

Looking forward to hearing from you!

- Anna and Bergdís

PLEASURING BODIES

It's day three of our rehearsals in Helsinki, and whilst the days have been filled with reading, writing and creative meetings, we've stayed strong in our "physical theatre practitioners' mindset" and decided to start each morning with physical work, namely active meditation.

Man Ray, inspiration to physical softness

What this type of meditation invites you to do, is to commit to your body's impulses and quite simply, do what feels good. The body aids the mind to let go, and whilst each thought that comes to your mind during the exercise is welcomed, it is also sent away. The body as a leader helps us to let go of any oppressive and restrictive thoughts or to plan our movements, and consequently block listening and spontaneity.

Listening to my body's moods these three mornings – and asking it what feels good – I've dived into the contemplation of pleasure. To do what feels pleasurable feels incredibly empowering; you listen to your instinct, and suddenly you're absolutely confident and careless in anything you do, whether it's jumping around the room and climbing on the walls or lying silently in the corner of the rehearsal room. And yet we are so often made feel guilty for acting upon what's pleasurable.

Marc Chagall "The Blue Circus"

I remember "pleasuring" first time in a theatrical context, taking part to Yorgos Karamalegos' workshop in Lamda, London. He invited the whole group into a long improvisation, which consisted of submitting to pleasure, and pleasure only. Apparently he had borrowed the concept from Lorna Marshall, and later developed it into his own practice. I loved the idea, but couldn't help but constantly feel like I wasn't doing enough as a performer; that I was being lazy when not pushing myself into the uncomfortable areas. Yet, when minutes passed, suddenly the whole room was playing, testing their boundaries; bubbling with a huge amount of risk-taking.

So I think this is the key: as actors, we are constantly being encouraged to "go out of the comfort zone" and to "push our boundaries", yet as a plain instruction this can make us take risks out of fear, not will, and start judging ourselves based on daring, not commitment and artistic expressivity. An alternative way to really reach authentic and informed actions, is to listen to our bodies and their need for pleasure: when the body is ready, it will naturally jump into taking risks and sudden changes, following its pulsations. The body knows, and the mind pushing it to show off without its will, can easily lead into injuries, or simply "empty actions".

Reflecting further on the body's will, pleasure and the actor's agency, Hélène Cixous' concept of jouissance came to my mind. For Cixous, jouissance  is an orgasmic feeling of pleasure, which works on physical, spiritual and political levels and is the source of woman's (or a person's) creativity. She describes it in the following words: 

explosion, diffusion, effervescence, abundance...takes pleasure (jouit) in being limitless

Sounds familiar? The moment when you think you're flying. It's comforting to know that it has a name (multiple, I'm sure). Cixous' explanation gives somehow a confirmation for the value of pleasure. It lifts the idea from selfish enjoyment into a creative force, and an apparatus for reaching new hights in artistic expression.

A painting by Balthus, capturing glimpses of limitless pleasure.

Let's follow our bodies and keep pleasuring! We only need to listen.

– Anna

RESIDENCY HELSINKI

We are currently working on the research and development for our next project, MEN (working title) at Alppila Church in Helsinki.

As four female artists we are curious about gendered experiences that reach beyond our own, and so we ask: What does it mean to be a man in today's world?

After months of individual research in Europe and North America we are excited to get this time together for intensive two weeks of research and development in Helsinki through the support of Kulturkontakt Nord's Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme. 

Then on Monday we start our residency at Villa Salin, managed by the Feminist Association Unioni. We will also hold a lecture-workshop on Equality in Physical Actor Training at Maikki Friberg Home, which is part of Feminist Association Unioni's programme at the Women's Open University. 

Finally, our workshop The Performer and the Self will take place at Ilmaisukellari, organised by the Finnish Actor's Union. 

TODAY ON THE 9TH NOVEMBER WHEN I SIT DOWN TO WRITE...

I sat down to write about my experience being out in the countryside directing an amateur theatre production. A great experience for a young and inexperienced director, as myself. Getting to work with people that share the same “hobby” of making theatre. A large group of people with complete different backgrounds, with very different experiences of doing theatre and a wide range of age. A fantastic way of sharing a little life together, something they cherish for the rest of their lives.

We did the classic Nordic children play by Thorbjörn Egner about the animals in Hakkebakkeskogen or Hálsaskógi as we call it in Iceland. A classic play about being good to one another, to NOT eat each other... "All the animals in the forest should be friends", is the first rule. A highly political play in my opinion. Filled with contradictions of how we should live our lives and what should be allowed and what not and characters you can well relate to in our daily life. But it has a main message that we want our children to understand and be influenced by....be good to one another. The small animals can help the bigger ones and the big ones can help the smaller ones... Right? 

From the play Dýrin í Hálsaskógi by Thorbjörn Egner performed at Bifröst

So I was there for 7 weeks.  It was great. More than great, in fact. I learned a lot, gained new friends and got more experienced working as a director. Leading a group. Setting goals. Supporting each individual. Treating them equally. Asking them to show each other respect and support each other in their work. My first rule in this small town was no gossip within the group, mutual respect, support and honesty was our motto. Solving the problems by finding the root first, talking to each other as equals before shouting at each other, complaining, telling each other off or leaving in anger. And YES it was difficult at times. Of course, we are only human.  But I believe I was able to create a good working atmosphere within the group so everyone felt important and felt they were listen to and felt they were able to create in a safe place, allowed to make mistakes. A working environment that I believe is what should always be everywhere. No hierarchy but cooperation with leadership. 

As I´m writing this I keep thinking about our world today in relation to the elections in America and the latest election in Iceland, Colombia and Brexit. I have this urge of standing on a mountaintop shouting so everyone can hear:

Hey lets be good to one another and treat each other with respect regardless of our background, colour, shape, type, education, status, finance… Let´s not talk down to each other or talk badly about one another. Let´s talk about the root of the problem. Lets attack it. Let´s face it! Meet it! And treat it!

I don´t think we have much time actually. We need to begin today. Yes we need leaders but we need the right ones, that will treat us with respect and will support us no matter who we are. Because each human being on this earth has the right to live and has the same right as others. 

My writing today isn´t about our next theatre piece or directly about our theatre work at the moment. I cannot help myself writing my thoughts as they come to me now, today on the 9th of November when I sit down to write...

Theatre is about sharing the world, sharing experiences, thoughts, ideology, discoveries and to make a change. Theatre should challenge our thoughts; it used to be a media that would uncover the truth when needed. Theatre is a tool to have an impact, to share information in a different way than writings and films can. Theatre is a powerful medium that serves a greater purpose than only entertaining the audiences. We shouldn´t be afraid to get our voices out there and sharing our vision and telling the truth as it is.

For our next project I personally have great hopes of sharing truth in a different way I´ve done before. Telling real stories. Getting more voices out there for others to hear them and be influenced by. We can make a change. We can have a great impact.

 I have only positive energy to give to the year 2017 and I know we are a large group of positive people out there that are ready to fight for a better life on our beautiful planet. I want to end with a quote that I´m very fond of from Dr. Seuss: "I know, up on top you are seeing great sights, but down here at the bottom we, too, should have rights"

- Bergdís Júlía Jóhannsdóttir

OUR NEXT PROJECT

As four female artists we want to explore what our brothers, fathers, husbands, boyfriends, male friends, male coworkers and male acquaintances experience that we may not be aware of as women. What does it mean to be a man?

We do not own, but felt inspired by, this photo

We are preparing this research for our next physical theatre production which will continue development over the course of the next two years. 

It stems from our curiosity on human nature and itch for storytelling experiences outside our own bodies, our viewpoints, and an interest in the audience's relationship to a body telling verbatim stories that are clearly not of its own experiences. 

We are looking to interview men of all ages, professions and backgrounds. In 2016 we can conduct these interviews in English, Finnish and Icelandic. 

If you are interested in sharing your experiences through a simple interview with us. You will be protected with anonymity and welcome to selectively answer questions you feel are relevant to you and comfortable.

Contact spindrifttheatre@gmail.com to participate! We'd love to have you on board. 

TEACHING IN FINLAND

We are happy to announce we will be leading our workshop "The Performer and the Self" at the Finnish Actor's Union in January 2017!

From our workshop "The Performer and the Self" at the Norwegian Actor's Centre 2016. 

Actors, dancers, directors, performers are welcome to sign up here. 

The workshop will be taught in English although we have Finnish, Icelandic and Swedish speaking instructors on our team. 

We look forward to working with you in Helsinki!

SHOUT OUT

We wanted to give a shout out to our frequent collaborator and company friend: sound designer Ella Wahlström, for her recent success on Broadway! 

See more of her work here: http://ellawahlstrom.com