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About |
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In 2001, in an electrical shed in Reykjavik's warehouse district, four theater visionaries set off a spark with their trailblazing, high-octane productions. The artists' ensemble known as VESTURPORT quickly established itself as Iceland's most inventive theater and film companies. Known for innovative productions that challenge traditional performance text, they have been called “one of Europe’s most exciting theatre ensembles” by The Guardian (UK). In their ten year history, the company has produced seven full length feature films and fifteen different theater productions, receiving wide audience and critical acclaim, packing houses across the world, and winning numerous awards for its work both at home and abroad.
Now, its innovative approach has been rewarded with one of the most prestigious accolades in theatre, The European Theatre prize -- previously won by such luminaries as Peter Brook, Pina Bausch, Robert Lepage and Harold Pinter.
In addition to their critical success, Vesturport attracts a new, young audience to the theater. Much of the success is attributed to founder Gísli Örn Garðarsson, a former gymnast whose acrobatic performances and flamboyant physical style of directing has brought the company one step closer to becoming mainstream entertainment. The UK Evening Standard said of him: "No one blazes a trail of theatrical excitement and thrilling invention quite like the Icelandic actor/director Gísli Gardarsson". |
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Repertory |
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METAMORPHOSIS
by Franz Kafka
A Lyric Hammersmith and Vesturport production
Directed and adapted by David Farr and Gisli Örn Gardarsson
Kafka’s terrifying but bizarrely comic story bursts onto the stage in a theatrically explosive new version by Artistic Director David Farr (Lyric Hammersmith Theatre) and actor/director Gisli Örn Gardarsson of Vesturport. This unanimously-acclaimed production combines breathtaking physicality and daring aerial action as the recently transformed Gregor lithely negotiates a gravity-defying split level set. . The ordinary, unremarkable life of the Samsa family is turned upside down when their son, Gregor, their sole provider, emerges one morning to find himself inexplicably transformed into a gigantic insect. His family’s feelings of revulsion turn to resentment with horrifying results. The production’s stunning design keeps the insect permanently visible in a topsy-turvy upstairs room, contorting to the sounds of his family’s betrayal and swinging from the rafters, as in a veritable gymnasium. The aerial physicality that has become Gisli Örn Gardarsson’s trademark seems a match made in heaven for Kafka’s hellish story. With an evocative original score composed by world-renowned musician and lyricist Nick Cave and long time collaborator Warren Ellis from The Bad Seeds, the music emphasizes Kafka’s dream-like vision and turn it into an electrifying reality.
Metamorphosis was performed twice at the Lyric Hammersmith in London (brought back due to popular demand), toured the UK and then performed in South-Korea (Seoul), Ireland (Dublin), at the National Theatre in Iceland (Reykjavik), Hong Kong, Tasmania (Hobart) and Australia (Sidney/Wollongong), Colombia (Bogotá), BAM (New York) and St Petersburg.
Running time: 85 minutes without interval
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FAUST
inspired by Goethe
A Vesturport and Reykjavík City Theatre production
co-produced by Theatre im Pfalzbau
Directed by Gisli Örn Gardarsson, with music by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis.
A thrilling, circus-inspired take on Goethe's universal tale of a man selling his soul to the devil, Faust has never been imagined quite like this before. Loud, fast, explosive, poetic and acrobatic, Vesturport’s Faust is hilarious and terrifying with a score ranging from devilish glam-rock to soulful ballads.
Running time: 2 hours with interval
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Outreach and Residencies |
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| Please contact us for further information about residency activities.
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