Nominees for Gulljerven 2022

We received many good suggestions for this year's Gulljerven, and it gives us great pleasure to announce this year's nominees.

The proposals received are processed by a committee, and the selection of nominees is submitted to this year's jury, which consists of

Bernt Bjørn, actor, director
Kristin Sundelin, responsible for performing arts DKS Troms og Finnmark
Tony Tran, dancer, choreographer
Katja Lindeberg, actor, director

The winners will be announced at the Gulljerven awards ceremony on Thursday, December 1 during this year's Showbox.

Gulljerven is an award to honor all those who stand up for the performing arts for young audiences, and help bring it to children and young people in every corner of Norway. Established in 2019, and awarded by Norsk Scenekunstbruk. The prize will be awarded on Thursday, December 1 during Showbox in Oslo.

NEW ARRIVALS OF THE YEAR 

Is there anyone you see becoming the next big thing in the field of performing arts for children and young people? Someone who deserves to be noticed by the rest of the field? 

Stories about (not) coming home by Historias (Issa/Lopez/Gato). Combining film, dance and text, the performance approaches stories of freedom of expression, possibilities and life's bends. The story of Carlos Catun Quintera (Gato) is exquisitely woven, supported by fellow dancers Pierro Issa and Nicolay Lopez. A story, a performance and a group of dancers who have made a name for themselves in the performing arts field over the past year. 

Tani Dibasey. Actor, director and writer who has contributed, created and acted in a number of underground projects in recent years, including DJ Pedo (Antiteatret), Real Life and has written Unlimited Void. Played in 2021 in Skuddsikker vest (Brageteatret). Several of the projects focus on theater for young adults who do not seek out traditional theater. Dibasey has a unique talent for getting the audience on his team - a performing artist we will see a lot of in the future, both in front of and behind the scenes. 

Ornilia Ubisse. A dancer who works both as a performer and creator and who in recent years has participated in several tours and productions - including Nutopia and Frikar X. She collaborates with a number of choreographers, has established Kronos Dance Company and been a participant in TekstLab Inkubator where she has choreographed two performances, Chaos in the Box, and Rua 57 which she showed at Oslohendelser in 2021, a strongly personal performance where she takes the audience back to her childhood memories from Mozambique. 

Sacha Slengesol Balgobin. Actor and director. Balgobin wrote, produced and acted in the performance Emma together with Elg Elgesem. The production dealt with the struggle between drugs and love, and visualized a youthful reality that hit spot on with the young audience. The production seemed very well thought out at every stage, with particularly good integration of live music/DJ on stage. 

Emma Sofie Joma Rustad, hard-working young actor from Røyrvik, graduated from Nord Actor Education 2021. After graduating, Joma Rustad has worked to promote Sami culture in the performing arts field, and is currently working on a performance that will promote Sami myths and legends. This is an actor we will be hearing more from. 

OLDEST CITIZEN OF THE YEAR 

The award will go to an artist/company that has worked with performing arts for children and young people for a long time, and which through its artistic work has provided many good art experiences to the audience. 

Karstein Solli. Since 2009, Solli has been the artistic director of Seanse - a center for art production for the development of projects aimed at young audiences. Solli and Seanse have developed a unique method in which they meet performing artists as equals, and draw on expertise from Volda University College with the aim of a mutual exchange of knowledge between everyone involved. Solli is a significant player in the field of research, artist development and the arts, in addition to having her own productions for young children. He is a unique artist who has been promoting other artists for a number of years. 

Teater Joker. Since its inception, the company has had a clear artistic identity with which it has had great success in Norway and internationally. Teater Joker has also developed new Norwegian drama for young audiences, and is a company that has been on countless tours over the years. Through a physical and timeless theatrical language, they are always relevant, they have promoted several actors, and have almost become an institution in the field. The company turned 30 years old in 2021, and while they can look back on an enormous artistic activity, they also have their eyes on the next performance and the next audience meeting. 

Robsrud&DeaN. For the past 30 years, the company has produced theater in forms that combine both classical and modern theater expressions. In 1984, what was to become the group's foundation opened in a disused tram shed at Torshov in Oslo. They have researched, developed and presented various forms of theater that are little known in Norway, and draw on a legacy of inspiration from jester theater, absurd theater and the Theater of Cruelty. They have excelled with theatrical techniques, their distinctive humor and good audience contact that often includes those sitting in the audience. The group has gone under several names, but is today known as Robsrud&DeaN. 

CABLE PULLER OF THE YEAR 

This award goes to a steady technician who knows how to pull their cable. It can also go to a dancer, actor or performer who shows strong commitment and exquisite precision during up and down rigging. 

Sondre Erenstsen. For a number of years he has traveled up and down the country with the Absence Crew, and when the ensemble has flown, Sondre has driven vans and trucks filled to the brim with equipment and set design. Hundreds of hours spent behind the wheel and behind the scenes to get the shows up and running. He is the first to arrive at the venue and the last to leave. Always punctual, and just as full of spirit and drive. When Absence started working with him, he ran a sound and lighting company with two friends, but he has since become a full-time touring technician for the company, which couldn't manage without him. 

Linda Nikolaisen. Always on time, always on the go. Linda is the technician who stays in the background, but who makes everything run smoothly. Where others have influenced the artistic project, Linda is the deviator, which she does well. She stays until the job is done, and isn't done until she's done. She has recently been on tour with Asfaltpuls in Vestland and Viken, and was a technician on Blikk by Mine Yalcin. She has been a technician for many years, never says no and is a master at finding MacGyver solutions when (often) needed on tour. In addition to being reliable and steady, she always makes sure that the actors and others in the production are doing well. 

PARTNER OF THE YEAR AT HOME ALONE 

The award will go to the best and/or most exhausted partner who puts up with the fact that their partner, girlfriend or spouse lives much of their life on the road and is mostly seen at weekends.

Ane Evjen Gjøvåg, girlfriend, mother and partner to Andreas Roksvåg. She is always there, says yes, understands and encourages people to follow their dreams. Selflessly and straightforwardly, she and her husband embrace the freelance and dancing life together, with two little girls in tow. Ane is a modern dancer who masterfully manages to balance work and family life in an unpredictable life as an artist. 

Pauline Issa. During the 10 years she has been married to her husband Pierro Issa, he has spent large periods of time on tour with DKS. Together with Absence and now also with Historas. He has spent a lot of time away from Bergen, and they have two children for whom she has taken great responsibility. A lot of sacrifice so that he can tour with DKS, where performers are dependent on having a partner who supports them 100%. It's not easy to be the one left alone when the other is on tour. 

BUSINESS OF THE YEAR 

Is there a venue, a cultural center, an organizer, a school or a county that is always fantastic to come to? Someone who has gone the extra mile to make sure things run smoothly?  

Nordic Black Theatre & Cafeteatret. For 30 years, the theater has developed the Norwegian performing arts landscape through uncompromising efforts to highlight the quality and expertise of actors and directors who come from several cultures. The skills and knowledge of everyone who works there are rock solid, and the warmth and genuine interest that greets you when you arrive is extraordinary. In fact, rumor has it that this is one of the institutions where you get the best welcome. No matter where they have been located, they have always had a generosity that is difficult to compare with other institutions. Nordic Black is 30 years old this year, a host that always goes the extra mile for visiting artists.

Cultural contact and teacher Wenche Veivåg Tveit and the rest of the teachers at Straumen Skule in Tysvær municipality in Rogaland. After a super welcome on Friday, February 11, 2021, Madam Pysj was invited up to the staff room after the performance where rolls and cold cuts were ready for lunch, where they sat with Wenche and the teachers during their lunch break and heard how much such cultural experiences help to include students who might otherwise tend to fall outside the school's tight schedule. It's also these kinds of experiences that drive companies to continue bringing cultural experiences around the country. 

Røyslimoen School in Lillehammer. Thanks to good organization on the part of the school, an enthusiastic cultural contact with full control, and a group of well-prepared and really professional cultural hosts among the students, the performers in the Cultural Rucksack always get a fantastic reception when they come to Røyslimoen. The school sets aside teaching time for the cultural contact to prepare for the visits, and together with the cultural hosts they ensure that everything is in place for the guests to arrive. A proper thank you for the visit is always included when the applause has died down. Actors have also received cozy Christmas cards from the school, written by the cultural hosts while the waffle press was warming up at one of their many meetings with the cultural contact. 

Indre Østfold Prison with cultural contact Simen Rem. The prison shows a distinctive ability for good cooperation, organization and service that benefits both young inmates and visiting performers.The prison has worked closely with DKS and Kulturdråpen for several years, and works continuously to offer inmates a wide range of activities. As a performer or visitor, you always feel well looked after - and food is always served. This year, they are facilitating a new music workshop that focuses on young inmates and will be led by Son of Light and Jonathan Castro. The prison hosts more than 10 cultural events per year, in addition to regular interaction groups and music workshops. Indre Østfold Prison stands out as a particularly good host. 

SUSTAINABILITY HERO OF THE YEAR 

Has anyone taken old costumes or set design to new heights? Creative reuse of the same script and roles? Here you can suggest costumes, props and set design elements on adventurous journeys through performances and companies, or a staff reused in imaginable and unimaginable combinations of different functions and roles. Or has anyone planned an extra sustainable itinerary/tour, or traveled in an environmentally friendly way?

An enemy of the people by Teaterkjøkkenet. The production works with sustainability in several ways. The theme: The play is perhaps the world's first theater piece about pollution, and the group raises this theme for the audience in a very convincing way. Set design: Reusing a bunch of old soda crates that would otherwise have ended up on the trash heap. Performers: The three performers on stage play all the roles and also recycle them, so that the roles are recreated and reused in three different parts during the performance. Time: The performance is compressed down to a sustainable time frame, so that it can have many encounters with students through DKS. Script: In addition, it must be mentioned that the script is largely reused. It was first used in 1882 by Henrik Ibsen, then 8542 times by others, before it has now been recycled for the 8543rd time. 

Maya Mi Samuelsen has had several performances dealing with the protection of vulnerable natural areas.Wind-Wind Situationdealt with wind turbines and their impact on bird life. My Rebellion Against Farming was a rebellion against the aquaculture industry, against fish farming in open facilities. Large parts of Samuelsen's hometown Karlsøya is a nature reserve due to a rich diversity of cultural landscapes with rare plants and old forests, and when the politicians decided to create an open aquaculture facility, Maya Mi decided to use her art as an activism and survival mechanism. The projects address the relationship between wild nature and cultivated culture, and Samuelsen's approach to art as environmental activism is personal and corporeal, as something non-violent, sensual and political. 

Animalium by Teater Fot. The project is the result of a long artistic journey in performing arts for children, where the group has worked with an overall ecocritical perspective where humans are not at the center, but are more equal to animals, plants and places. The project's exploration of different formats such as workshops, site-specific performance and visits to kindergartens draws the project into several innovative audience encounters. Animalium also stands out for its strong sensitivity to the demands of children and adult participation in the project, where the ecosystem of actors, dancers and audience interact. In Animalium, the performers interact with the materials that already exist on site, the animal print costumes they use are from Fretex, the scenography is recycled, and they always travel in the greenest way possible. 

Silje Sandodden Kise is a scenographer who works with ecoscenography, and with sustainability as an artistic driving force and working method. For several years, Kise has worked in various ways to change the structures and practices when it comes to developing sustainable scenography. Among other things, she has been in the working group Recycled Scenography, which has written the report Sustainable Production in the Performing Arts, and has from the start been a project advisor for Syv mil's digital sustainable platform, SHIFTIT. "Kise's approach to using environmental and climate commitment as a driving force is both artistically interesting and will have a major impact on the development of a greener performing arts field in the coming years. 

SPECIAL ARTISTIC EFFORT 

The award goes to an artist, group, ensemble or institution that has distinguished itself over the past two years with an idea/performance/concept for what performing arts for a young audience can be. 

Ravdeep Singh Bajwa. Nominated for the role of Tariq in Østfold International Theatre's production This Life or the Next. Alone on stage for almost two hours, he never lets go of the audience. He tells the story of Tariq, a young man who is radicalized and travels to Syria as a foreign fighter. Bajwa exquisitely reveals the development of the young man, bringing out the doubts, fears, strength and sense of belonging that slowly through the performance builds stone upon stone in the man and his decisions. In addition, he plays all the supporting roles, moves the stage design and pulls the performance with power and nerve to the very end, in a performance that leaves no one unaffected. 

Cirka Teater. On tour with Løve and Garage in Inland Norway. The two performances had something in common: Professional performers with strong presence and great energy, and fantastic visual expressions that never ceased to surprise. A life-affirming playfulness in theme and performance from the performers. A tribute to imagination and curiosity. Warm and direct contact between performer and audience. Lots of humor. These two performances say a lot about Cirka Teater. A group that is constantly working towards new formats, expressions and concepts and therefore never becomes boring and predictable, but still has a solid foundation that permeates everything they do. 

Therese Slob and Halvard Bjørkås' Friminutt. A performance adapted through the different phases of the pandemic, played in the schoolyard. The performance stands out in particular in the extensive way it handles interaction with the students. Nothing is forced, from those who choose not to participate to those who want to influence.There has been the joy of dance, warm community experiences, and creativity in free expression, especially because the performers are able to capture how they can best meet the individual student and the student body at the individual school with respect, warmth, creativity and play. 

Constellation's performance Wake Night. Explored the concept of an interactive theater experience for tweens. Konstellasjonen has developed a raw, magical theater experience, where DKS audiences don't quite understand that theater can also be this. It's almost like walking through a historical haunted house, about superstition, mysticism and occultism. If you're not afraid when you walk through the story with the actors, look over your shoulder one more time. 

Panta Rei Dance Theater. Panta Rei has been creating excellent dance performances for children and young people for a number of years. The performances are of high quality, with strong dancers and topical themes. In addition, they create a framework that opens the dance to the audience and adds depth to the experience. Their work to include dance for audiences around Norway, and the way they involve and promote new dancers, has already left its mark on the performing arts field - and will be visible for a long time. Panta Rei always delivers solid artistic work and gives children and young people good art experiences, and is also not afraid to work for a better everyday life for dance artists. 

During the pandemic, Nils Petter Mørland has made an extraordinary effort to produce performing arts and digital radio plays with high ambitions for artistic quality. By challenging formats and genres, Brageteatret's initiatives have given the young audience in Viken good art experiences in demanding years.The Brageteatret has also co-produced the educational program "Bulletproof West - a meeting with Yahya Hassan's poetry", which has challenged and expanded the performing arts format in DKS. Mørland is fearless, creative and solution-oriented in his approach to the subject and is nominated for his beating heart for performing arts for children and young people through 21/22, and a demanding pandemic. 

THIS YEAR'S (D)JERVESTE 

The prize will be awarded to a person who has spoken up for art in the past year. To someone who has researched, written about, supported, lifted or worked with structures. To someone who has fearlessly dared to ask questions about the conditions of art or artists, or in other ways has put art on the agenda.

Hans Martin Austestad is nominated for his efforts in recent years to improve conditions for performing artists in the Cultural Rucksack. He has held several artist appeals, the last of which gathered more than 2,500 artists. He has the ability to go into the details of each individual case and at the same time lift his gaze and never lose sight of the connections between politics, working conditions, language and what consequences the major changes ultimately have for art - and those for whom art is made. 

Siri Dybwik and Nils Christian Fossdal are nominated for the establishment of Elefantteateret, which has highlighted and developed performing arts for the very young. Elefantteatret has performances for audiences aged 0-5 and, through a modern view of what children and childhood are, has developed a place that never compromises on art. It takes hard work over several years to do what Siri and Nils Christian have done - something that will benefit the performing arts, artists and not least the youngest audience for many years to come. 

Amund Sjølie Sveen is nominated for his ability to nuance issues, especially through art. For many years, his artistic projects have challenged the performing arts and politics, such as Nordting and Melting. Sveen is cleverly critical of everything from Norway's oil policy and arms exports to national and geopolitical issues. All accessible to a young audience, and by stretching the definitions of artistic interaction. 

Grace Tabea Tenga. Dancer, activist, writer and performing arts critic, an important voice in the Norwegian performing arts field. Tenga approaches art with multiple perspectives that enrich the Norwegian public and the art field in particular. She places art in a larger theoretical and historical context, including a feminist and decolonial perspective, and reflects on gender, identity politics and power. She opens up art and makes room for good conversations, and shapes and makes visible the structures from within when it comes to who is heard, who we see and the art field's blind spots. 

Kristine Karåla Øren, Chair of the Norwegian Dance Artists Association. Øren is a well-known voice in the Norwegian public sphere who always maintains a clear focus on the conditions of dance and the importance of dancers in Norwegian working and cultural life. He has been head of NODA since 2018, and has managed his role very well. She took a clear stand in the summer of 2021, didn't budge an inch when the going got tough, and showed that she always stands behind the dance artists she represents.