Together with INSTED we were invited to the Körber Studio Junge Regie 2008 in Hamburg, Germany’s annual symposium for young directors. We lived in a place just of the Reeperbahn (probably the most decadent street in Europe), but even so nightlife was eclipsed by a full on schedule that seemed devised to test even the toughest theatre junkie. 

The regular programme:  show for breakfast, four hour afternoon debate about the previous shows, supper (this was invariably soup), first play of the evening followed by an audience discussion, second play of the evening followed by an audience discussion, then a ‘party’ (which was another play, only this time you were allowed to bring in a glass of wine). 

So, this was the ‘basic programme’ around which were scheduled a series of special events, shows, talks and debates, including a lecture with postdramatic theatre gurus Hans Thies Lehmann and Heiner Goebbels.

By the end of six days we had seen nineteen shows. You can read the previous sentence again if you like.

Being invited to the Körber Studio Junge Regie in Hamburg is equivalent to being waved onto a roller-coaster escapade through the current trends of contemporary German theatre. It would be an interesting sociological experiment to force Charles Spencer through the experience. My guess is that he’d explode in a fit of indignation. 

With neat regularity Spencer accuses people like Katie Mitchell of ‘smashing up the classics’, taking ‘outrageous liberties’ and ‘not serving the intentions of the dead playwright’ (actual quotes!!!) On evidence of Körber Studio 2008 faithfully reconstructing classics is certainly not what German theatre is about. It dismantles them, reconfigures them into new constellations, probes them for contemporary relevance or exposes ideological clashes with current thinking. The productions we saw of Woyzek, Hamlet, Hedda Gabler and Elektra were not attempts at reconstructing Büchner, Shakespeare, Ibsen or Hoffmansthal but rethinking them and their themes from a 21^st century standpoint. A central figure at the core of German (and most European) theatre is the ‘dramaturge’. When the term crops up it in Britain it is usually in reference to someone who acts as a kind of script supervisor on new writing. But on the continent dramaturges work on classic plays, they research previous drafts, influences etc. and then, together with the director, determine the structure and strategy for a new production (in Britain we’d say adaptation) of it. The constant accompaniment of the dramaturge and the resulting intellectual rigour in theatrical debates was one of the first striking features of our visit to Hamburg.

The other one (really not wanting to be stereotypical, but hey) was that German tea is a fucking disgrace. You get presented with a glass (!) of warm water into which you are expected to dunk a tea bag. And when Oystein asked for tea with milk the guy behind the bar (after an initial period of confusion) held it under the coffee machine and filled it up with frothy milk. 

A rather novel aspect of the festival was that it was accompanied by students of criticism (in Germany you study to become a critic) as well as the students of directing, dramaturgy and acting. The critics joined the directors’ internal discussions and debates on the shows we had seen and then read out and discussed their reviews with the artistic teams under discussion present. This meant that the practitioners had an opportunity to give direct feedback to the critics and vice versa. It was a great idea to bring these two stereotypically polarised fronts together and engage in mutual debate.

Christa Müller, a dramaturge at the Thalia showed us around the Thalia Theater which made us green with envy: two rehearsal stages which are exact replicas of the main stage (minus the auditorium) a firmly employed ensemble of actors on a regular salary and a current repertoire of fifty three (!!!) plays! 

Our stay in Hamburg was really inspiring and we met some great people – we thank the Thalia Theater, the Körber Stiftung and INSTED for inviting us, and we hope to return to Germany again soon (maybe next time with a production…) Next week we’ll be back in London.

Read more on: 

http://www.insted.eu 

http://www.thalia-theater.de

http://www.koerber-stiftung.de/foerderung/foerderung_junger_kuenstler/studio_junge_regie/index.html

http://www.implodingfictions.com 

or see some more photos from our trip on 

http://www.facbook.com/photo.php?pid=481820&l=eee5e&id=603357604

- Philip

On Friday the 22nd February we finally presented our two showcase performances of Norway.Today. We pitched our ideas to Company of Angels last June, and have been working actively on the production since last September, so it was a relief to finally seeing it all come to fruition. This long awaited culmination only marks the end of phase one though, now we are on to phase two which includes planning further development and contacting potential venues and festivals.

Being given the theatre at the Junction not only to perform in, but also to rehearse in for the entire two weeks we were there was a rare luxury, but also absolutely necessary: Our concept relies heavily on the use of video projection and live feed, and we were able to install and work with these features from day one. We received very positive feedback on how the video projection was incorporated into the show, something we would never have achieved had we not had the chance to rehearse with it through the whole process.

There are some people we would like to thank for their dedication to this project, without whom it would not have come together:

John, Theresa and Vanessa at Company of Angels for giving us this great opportunity.

Richard and Lucia at the Junction for their generosity, giving us the chance to work in the Junction theatre space for two weeks.

The Junction staff for their help with this and that whenever we needed it.

Tamas Kirali, our lighting designer who came in right at the very end and lit the show beautifully.

Yui Okado who volunteered to help us out with stage management in the last stages of the process.

Rob Colin Thomas, photographer, for coming up to Cambridge to take photographs of the show.

Our two audiences who gave us positive, critical and constructive feedback.

And last but not least:

Laurence Short, our video and sound designer – this would have been a completely different show without you, we have benefitted greatly from your technical know-how and never-ending ingenuity! We hope this is the beginning of a long and fruitful relationship!

And of course the actors, Neil Connolly and Hannah Boyde – you are our August and Julie, and we look forward to continue the Norway.Today adventure with you!

Where do we go next? We don’t know yet. But one thing is certain: There will be more performances of Norway.Today. It is only a question of where and when…

- Øystein

Imploding Fictions’ production of Norway.Today by Igor Bauersima (translated by Dr. Marlene Norst) was developed with support from Company of Angels and The Junction as part of the Young Angels Theatremakers Award Programme 07/08.

Images: Rob Thomas © 2008 http://www.robthomasphotography.com

Oystein is in the midst of preparing two shows; Beauty in Stone at Camden People’s Theatre with the new integrated performance company Preface Morn (http://www.perform.tv/thescenepool/beautyinstone.html) and his solo performance Imitating Eloquence which will be performed in Kristiansand, Norway on 1st February. 

Pip is currently in rehearsal for Peter Handke’s silent piece The Hour We Knew Nothing Of Each Other at the National Theatre (opens 6^th Feb).

On the Imploding Fictions front we have our new show Norway.Today coming up on the 22^nd January at the Junction in Cambridge (book tickets under  http:/www.junction.co.uk).

But the biggest Imploding Fictions news is that Hamletmachine was awarded the Premio Internazionale Claudio Gora at its guest performance in Rome! The Jury selected the production with the following statement: 

For the ability to express through the poetry of the body, the power of imagery and strength of silences and the rigorous research conducted.

Øystein, Pip, Sergio Sivori and Cristina Giordana (the organizers of Premio Internazionale Claudio Gora)

We are really honoured to have been chosen for this award and would like to thank everyone at Laboratorium Teatro in Rome for their support and encouragement. Especially Sergio Sivori for laboriously sieving sand for us ; )

(Wherever we travel with this production, the 200 kilos of sand are a nightmare…)

We hope to perform in Italy again soon!

Hannah Boyde and Sammy Metcalfe rehearsing before the Rome performance. In the background 200 kilos of wet sand spread out on the floor to dry… 

To read more about the Hamletmachine in Rome or Associazione Claudio Gora, check out these links:

http://www.assclaudiogora.it

http://www.laboratoriumteatro.it

http://www.groruddalen.no/spiller-hamlet-for-italienere.4443126-19208.html

http://www.teatroviviani.it/home/leggi.asp?id=921 

http://www.dramma.it/drammaturgie/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1441&Itemid=54 

Tickets for Norway.Today can now be booked at the Junction Box Office 01223511511, web: http://www.junction.co.uk . It would be great to see you there! 

Best, Philip Thorne and Øystein Brager – Artistic Directors of Imploding Fictions