Double Book Launch / Scenekunstklassikere

Welcome to a double book launch at Black Box teater!

In the book series Scenekunstklassikere, we are releasing two titles:

Hagar Malin Hellkvist Sellén: Pink Promises by Marie Bergby Handeland
Ingun Bjørnsgaard Prosjekt: pli à pli by Jonas Øren

The evening will feature presentations and a conversation with the authors, sparkling drinks, and light refreshments. The talk will be led by Snelle Ingrid Hall, Dean and Associate Professor at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts (KHiO), Department of Dance.

● Marie Bergby Handeland is a choreographer, dancer, and writer, educated at the Iceland University of the Arts, the Author Studies program in Bø, and the Writing Academy in Bergen. Her work is driven by a curiosity about what happens when people from different social, cultural, and political backgrounds enter the stage space, and the possibilities this creates for activating the public. She works to amplify voices and bodies she believes we should listen to, to twist those we have already heard by placing them in new frameworks, and to highlight latent choreographies in people and spaces that did not know they contained them. Movement and physicality can be perceived in a broad and playful sense and integrated into many contexts. She often explores how movement can be transferred from one art form to another, with a particular interest in choreographing music and text.

● Jonas Øren is a dance artist, choreographer, and writer who works with dance in collaboration across various fields and projects. He has toured nationally and internationally with his own productions. In 2024, he created the commissioned work Juvenilia Garden for the National Museum, and in 2022 he choreographed The Csárdás Princess for the Norwegian National Opera. In his work, Øren explores how the self, subjectivity, and identity are connected to communication, queer performance strategies, and popular cultural and historical references through dance and choreography. He holds a BA in classical ballet (2009–2012) and an MA in dance (2017–2019) from the Oslo National Academy of the Arts. He also works as an outreach consultant at Dansens Hus and has experience as both a critic for Norsk Shakespeare Tidsskrift and an editor for SKEIV BEVEGELSE (by Danseinformasjonen) and the lifestyle and fashion magazine PS: Magasin.