Grenland Friteater (GF) has for a large part of its artistic work focused on industrial development and the working culture tied to it. A culture such as that in art context has been given little attention. A key work for the GF in this respect is Harde Tak, which premiered in the early 2000s. The performance, which is based on Kjartan Fløgstad's novel Fyr & Flamme, was performed outdoors at Porsgrunn Mekaniske Verksted and later toured to other industrial sites in Norway. The performance has also caused further spin-off productions, including said performance.

For Aluminum Songs Geddy Aniksdal has written a number of strongly biographical lyrics. A collection of new texts with the main emphasis on growing up in aluminum countries, namely the industrial estate Årdalstangen in the middle of the Sognefjord.

Aluminums Songs is a theatre concert that moves in the borderland between Kurt Weil, old, honorable workers' songs and fragile, chuckling show pop. Grenland Friteater has made use of the experienced theatre composer Guttorm Guttormsen, due to his unique ability to listen to the core of the text, which we consider crucial to highlight the essence of Aniksdal's lyrics.

We found melodies that seek to enter into dialogue with - and as contrast to - this text universe. A melancholy text should not necessarily have a melancholy melody. The singability must be high, we are concerned that the audience receives the message important for the author to bring across. Furthermore: musical solutions that bind a song seamlessly with the next, only interrupted by - or perhaps in addition to - spiked short interspersed texts and anecdotes. In this way, text and music are equated.

The premiere took place on 29.11.2018 at Friteatret in Porsgrunn.

In addition to Geddy Aniksdal as a vocalist, the ensemble consists of a 4-person large orchestra under the name Samlebandet.

TRANSIT FESTIVAL 12 - 23 June 2019

An international theatre festival for women in contemporary theatre. This year’s festival theme is Hope in Action, during which 56 performances, 6 workshops and two art exhibitions will be presented by more than 75 artists from 5 continents.

The Transit Festival has existed since 1995 and it is part of The Magdalena Project, an international network of women in theatre created to enable women to produce work that more profoundly reflects their own experience. The festival is directed by Julia Varley, actress of Odin Teatret.

PROGRAMME