Projects in development:
Together, apart
by Jon Erik Myre
TOGETHER, APART is a tale of two individuals. Two people on separate planets, at least mentally. They have both experienced loss, but they are not in the same stage of the grieving process. The conversation that unfolds is marked by misunderstandings and a desperate attempt to make the other understand. Through subtle revelations, we learn more about the two, their experiences, and who they are and can become—for each other.
Grief affects us all differently. The same event can be perceived differently and trigger various emotions in each of us. Grief is often described as a process, often depicted with various stages. The divisions between these stages can be quite substantial, making the person going through it almost unrecognizable in the transition between them. Grief affects us all differently, and the subsequent process is never identical. When two people experience the same thing, their processes rarely, if ever, align. The different mental states can lead to misunderstandings and conflicts.
TOGETHER, APART explores such a grieving process. Two people in their individual journeys after a loss, each in their stage of the process. The dialogue that unfolds is uncomfortable, halting, and at times brutal. They fail to fully understand each other. And they have very different needs. Gradually, they move towards the next stage of the grieving process, but in vain. They remain in their separate stages, still unable to meet in the sorrow they carry. The script does not attempt to provide a definitive answer to right or wrong but rather opens a window into the destinies of two individuals. Two individuals coping with what they face in different ways, allowing for a broader audience to find recognition in the experience. The hope is that this insight will prompt reflection on oneself and one’s own life, how one handles what one encounters, especially in times of crisis, and also reflection on the lives of others and the challenges they may be facing. No matter how much empathy or sympathy we feel, we can never fully comprehend how others experience what they are going through, even when the situations seem nearly identical.
The script is being developed with support from The Norwegian Centre for New Playwriting (Dramatikkens Hus), Kristiansand Kommune, Agder Fylkeskommune, and Fond for frilansere.
The ConTroll Room
by Jon Erik Myre
In the near future, the Norwegian government has established Troll Factories to control the flow of information to the population. In pairs, individuals work together in control rooms where one sparks debate, and the other sustains the conversation—all to divert attention from what is really happening.
The script addresses everything one would prefer to avoid but perhaps should still discuss. It plunges into a world of digital manipulation and polarization. In a weary troll factory, two individuals occupy a clinical, bunker-like room filled with old and outdated technology. From their respective workstations, they troll through comment sections, engaging and provoking the public. As they perform their duties, they are confronted with various complex questions and challenges, having to grapple with and define facts, truth, democracy, and morality. The script explores how troll factories impact society and raises questions about what happens when democracy is threatened, and the people are manipulated.
Together with the characters, the goal is to explore both polarized opinions on taboo subjects and the motivations behind them. Additionally, it aims to examine how troll factories can influence the public and democracy, along with the consequences of such influence. What kind of world will we live in if the people are manipulated by those in power? If democracy is no longer truly democratic? If those in power allow themselves more audacious and extreme measures to control the population, even on a level where they no longer communicate openly and honestly but override and assert their power of definition? What are the actual consequences of such a society? Is it beneficial for the people to be unaware of everything, or…?
The content of the script focuses on ethical questions and morality related to both the actions of the two characters and a wide range of different themes that engage and sometimes define us as a society. It is presented in a naturalistic style but set in the near future, where the themes and issues closely mirror our own time, while digital development and pressure on society and those in power have increased significantly. Those in power are willing to systematically manipulate the people through this troll factory. The confrontation between those in power and representatives of the people may not necessarily end as one would hope, but hopefully, the frustration resulting from the wrong choices made will contribute to both engagement and discussion about what we, as a society, accept.
The script is being developed with support from Kristiansand Kommune, Agder Fylkeskommune, and The Fritt Ord Foundation
SpecTackle
by Jon Erik Myre
Three very different characters must work together to save their workplace. An established and renowned director has been brought in to save the future of the local theater. The production manager is still unsure about the content of the production they have booked but has great faith that they will sell better than ever by bringing in such a well-known artist to their small theater. The fact that he will premiere a new work with them is the most significant event in the theaters memory. The caretaker at the venue helps where he can and suddenly becomes a crucial piece in the director’s vision. A vision that gradually turns out to be not as concrete and clear as it should be, especially with the season launch just hours away.
SPECTACLE is a satirical glance at both the theater and cultural industry, the audience, and “the common people,” and the society we live in. A society in constant change where people’s priorities and values are always up for evaluation. Do we really need live cultural experiences? And what use do these artists really serve?
The performance is aimed at those who appreciate live cultural experiences and is a commentary on both the theater, the artists, the audience, and society at large. We sometimes experience significant dissonance in the programming of theaters and the desires and demands of the audience. “Great art” becomes a vague concept, with an obviously subjective starting point, and this discussion is addressed in the performance. Near and emotionally connected art, served in an accessible way, can, in certain artistic circles, be considered too banal and simple, requiring too little of its audience and, in the right packaging, even as commercial. In return, one must acknowledge that good sales primarily mean that a nerve has been struck, and that the content offers something appealing to the audience. The desire is to get closer to the audience and engage them in the dialogue around what producers and providers of performing arts do and think “wrong.” After all, it is the audience for whom we create art. The performance uses humor, both for self-criticism and to blur the barriers that, for some, make art and theater inaccessible as both a form and an arena.
The Wall
by Jon Erik Myre
A man has come home to visit his father. He has been diagnosed with dementia and has deteriorated significantly since the son was last home. When he knocks on the door, the father refuses to let him in and does not fully recognize his own son—at least not entirely. As a metaphor for this debilitating disease, the physical wall between them acts as an barrier to a close and honest conversation between them, and the two will always find themselves on opposite sides of this wall, each in their own “reality.” A heart-wrenching portrayal of family, truth, guilt, and an impossible dialogue.