From Iceland — Teach Us To Outgrow Our Madness

Teach Us To Outgrow Our Madness

Published June 12, 2009

Teach Us To Outgrow Our Madness

“We like to sing and dance
Go into a trance
We like gore
We always want more…”

Those lucky enough to witness fabled contemporary dancer Erna Ómarsdóttir’s Transaquania performance at the Blue Lagoon last April (any show that features her for that matter) will attest that she is truly a force to be reckoned with, a true artist in her field. The primeval, yet refined, way in which she manages to convey epic tales, fraught emotions – haphazard lust and eternal love alike – should put most performers to shame. Luckily for her native Iceland, the Brussels-based artist keeps bringing her performances back home again, performing around the country with team after team of world-class artists, dancers, choreographers and musicians. 

And now she’s back with a brand new show, and we’re real excited. Quoth her press-release:  

“Five Nordic women.
A terrifying secret.
Five seemingly ageless creatures.
Possessed by a spirit that turns this at times so well mannered quintet
into a Dionysian force.”

Teach Us to Outgrow Our Madness was created and conceived of by Erna along with Sissel Merete Bjorkli, Riina Huhtanen, Sigríður Soffía Níelsdóttir and Margrét Sara Guðjónsdóttir (with music by Valdimar Jóhannsson and Lieven Dousselaere). It has already been performed in select European locations to rave reviews. Its sole Icelandic performance will be at the National Theatre’s big stage on June 19 – a very fitting date for the feminocentric piece, since it is Icelandic Female Rights day (on that date in 1915, Danish King Christian X signed an Alþingi law that gave all Icelandic women over the age of 40 suffrage). It’s performed in English, so English-speakers need not fret. 

Go there.

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