A feelgood laurday by Tonje Roos

At the theater festival in Fjaler you can find most things. Everything from scary ghost hunts, emotional tearful performances and powerful plays that hit you right in the heart, to cheerful, happy and fun shows that lead to nothing more than putting big smiles on the faces of all the spectators. Simply feel-good performances.

We kicked off the feelgood day with two of us in the editorial team attending something that may not be categorized as feelgood, but was a memorable, powerful and not least unforgettable lecture by Kristina Quintano. Kristina talked about the refugee crisis in the Mediterranean, where she has worked as an activist since 2001. Most people were left with tears in the corner of their eyes at least once during the powerful experience.

We in the editorial team usually agree that Fjaler is a quiet place without too much life and partying, but all this changes when the theater festival comes to the village. We got a real sense of this today when all the activities on the festival day started. First there was the festival parade, with funny clowns jumping around and encouraging people to dance to the music played by Dale Musikkorps.

When we arrived at the old secondary school, the program and the fun started. First up was a quick concert played by the talented Høyer/Baksaas, who infected the audience with captivating rhythms. Next up was De Fjaleristiske together with Dale Musikkorps. The world's best circus together with the world's best band has truly understood the motto of the theater festival by spreading joy and hope to both young and old.

After the lively presentation, Kristina Quintano gave another impressive presentation and a break where you could see the elementary school's contribution to the theater festival.

At 6pm, the editors were in place outside the circus tent, ready to see Zappzarapp, but with more polite clothes this time. With talented artists performing all kinds of exciting but nerve-wracking stunts, the circus was fun for young and old alike. The music, rhythms and simple humor appealed well to the younger part of the audience, which led to a lot of laughter and engagement.

Zappzarapp had a unique way of performing that we in the editorial team have an ambivalent relationship with. This new way of performing meant that the artists were scattered around the stage for most of the show, even though they weren't the ones who were supposed to be in focus at the time, which we found distracting at times. Regardless of this, we thought the new setup was a creative way to make something new out of the old classic circus program. Something we particularly liked was that the performance was animal-free. Zappzarapp perfectly demonstrates with their amazing skills that animals are not necessary to get a good performance. This day of music, dance, rhythms, joy and laughter, combined with glorious weather and sunshine, creates real joy and optimism, which in turn gives us hope.