The wandering human

In the period from 2023 – 2025, Teatret Det Olske Orkester plans to create the theater project The Wandering Human in collaboration with a team of Greenlandic and Danish performing artists and academics. The work runs over 3 years and includes research, study trips, production of the performance, performance period, tour and various side projects such as artist talks, workshops and not least studies and exchanges regarding teaching material about Greenland in high school.
The performance is dedicated to everyone from 14 years and up and premieres at Nordatlantens Brygge d. March 24, 2025 in Copenhagen.

The history
The year is 1978. A Greenlandic girl sits at a kitchen table in a detached house just outside Aalborg, staring down at the colored flowers on the oilcloth. The Danish state has sent her into care to give her access to “a culture with future perspectives”. But in a moment, she will get up and leave. Back towards Greenland. Backwards through time. She walks, but she is not alone. A Danish anthropologist follows her, with bags full of strawberry jam, first aid and notebooks. And as they walk through the 60s and 50s, they meet ships with Greenlandic children on their way to re-education in Denmark, they meet craftsmen and nurses and teachers on their way to Greenland to pave and modernize and they walk on and they pass a stuffed polar bear and fake icebergs on their way to Emma Gad’s colony exhibition in Tivoli in 1905 and the anthropologist notes and notes while shaking her head. But the girl just keeps walking. And they walk and they walk and they walk and they walk backwards through the 1800s and see the Royal Greenland Trade pass by with ships heavily laden with cod liver oil, whale meat, blubber and sealskin and the anthropologist gets more and more angry and upset and shouts that something must be done, but the girl does nothing, she just walks on, backwards, with the anthropologist shouting after her. And they go through the 1700s and they meet the Danish mission and hear it call Inuit spiritual beliefs superstition, see it ban tattoos and build churches, and the anthropologist is getting tired, but all of a sudden they have arrived in 1721, the year when DR’s big venture “The Story of Greenland and Denmark” starts – a TV series that will tell about the common destiny of the two countries. The anthropologist is confused, she looks around. Hans Egede walks towards a camera. He looks worried. But the girl has moved on, past the film set. The anthropologist runs after her and shouts: “Where are you going? And what about me? And all my notes?” “Maybe someone can read them,” the girl replies, but the anthropologist shouts: “But where are you going? You can’t keep walking backwards!” But the girl replies: “I’m not going backwards, I’m going forwards, towards something that has always been”.

Why this project?
With this project we want to open a common investigative and critical space for the deeper and more complex narratives about Denmark’s colonial and post-colonial role in Greenland.
It is problematic when Danes tell Inuit history starting from Hans Egede’s arrival in 1721, skipping the story of a 4500-year-old culture and thus blocking access to understanding modern Greenlandic culture on its own terms. It keeps the Danes in a leading role they do not have.
We want to open a space that dares to deconstruct this Danish self-understanding and start listening to something else.

Collaborations
We have entered into a collaboration agreement with Nordatlantens Brygge by project manager Asta Stefansdottir, in relation to the presentation of the performance in Copenhagen and various side projects in collaboration with their school service. We have also collaborated with the venues Dynamo Workspace by Gry Lambertsen in Odense and Filuren/musikhuset by Ditte Felding in Aarhus. We have also collaborated with De Grønlandske Huse in Copenhagen by Lars Lerche, Odense by Annette Lyberth and Aarhus by Hanne Bjerre Lassen on side events, debates and workshops in connection with the performance. the performance.

In addition to this, we have initiated a collaboration with Falkonergården gymnasium by Tom Søgaard-Jensen, head of education and Martin Hagen Broch, history teacher, who together with students, will exchange with the project during our research and artistic process, help us with dissemination and distribution of the performance in high schools.

The team:

Performers
Elisabeth Heilmann Blind (dancer and performer), Nina Sikkersoq (dancer) and Øyvind Kirchhoff (performer), Rikke Liljenberg (actor) Playwrights
Naja Dyrendom Graugaard (post doc.) and Lotte Faarup Director
Lotte Faarup Sound design
Sirí Paulsen Lighting design
Mads Deibjerg Stage designer
Rolf Søborg Hansen Consultants
Julie Edel Hardenberg (artist), Lars Jensen (associate professor RUC), Gry Alstrøm (cand. mag)

Translator
Makka Kleist

Video
Alberte Parnuuna

Director and Project Assistant
Ida Zimmermann

PR sales
Lena Hedegaard Graphic designer
Therese Buch-Andersen Project management and administration
Charlotte Rindom

Events in connection with the performance THE WANDERING MAN

COPENHAGEN

Artistic introduction to the performance
Director Lotte Faarup talks about artistic, ethical and political considerations in the creation of “The Wandering Man”. We will discuss themes such as: privilege blindness, circular dramaturgies, managing other people’s stories, the responsibility of breaking oppression and creating a theater script on a collective basis. Time and Place:
Nordatlantens Brygge, Strandgade 91, 1401 Kbh. K. in the Café.
Tu esday 25.3.at 1 8.45-19.1 5Free if you buy a ticket to the performance Tuesday 25.3. purchase of tickets for the performance
Tuesday 8.4. at 18.45-19.15 Free with purchase of tickets for the performance purchase of tickets for the performance

Historical criticism from the stage
Dramaturg Naja Dyrendom Graugaard and director Lotte Faarup talk about artistic, ethical and political considerations in the creation of “The Wandering Man”. What obligation lies in working with historical themes from a critical angle? What can the theater do in this context in relation to its physical, present and sensual format? Time and Place:
Nordatlantens Brygge, Strandgade 91, 1401 Kbh. K. Sal Vest
Wednesday April 2, 18.30-19.15 Free for all

About creating collectively
In this artist talk, the performers in “The Wandering Man” talk about collective artistic processes. Topics such as ownership and participation in the performance’s narrative, personal engagement, political indignation and the use of the body as a physical archive of experience will be touched upon. Afterwards, there will be time for questions from the audience. The conversation will be moderated by the show’s dramaturge Naja Dyrendom Graugaard. Time and Place:
Nordatlantens Brygge, Strandgade 91, 1401 Kbh. K. Sal Vest
Saturday 5.4. at 17.30-18.15 Free with ticket purchase . purchase of a ticket to the performance

Debate about Greenland-Denmark, colonialism, blind spots and the Danish self-understanding.

The Wandering Man revolves around topics such as modern racism, invisible power structures and lost roots. Enter The Greenlandic House and get a rare insight into the thoughts and motivations behind the performance The Wandering Man. Can Danes tell Inuit history starting with the arrival of Hans Egede in 1721? Will we look at modern Greenlandic culture differently when we include the entire 4500-year-old Inuit culture and history? The performance is about lost roots and the resilience and will to reclaim identity and culture. Det Olske Orkester wants to open a space that dares to deconstruct the Danish self-understanding and start listening to voices other than the leading ones in the conversation about Greenland and Denmark. The event starts with a presentation from Lars Lerche, responsible for exhibitions and events at The Greenlandic House, who will talk about his own experiences as a Greenlander in Denmark, both privately and professionally. Then you can meet director Lotte Faarup for a chat about the background to the performance and finally we open up for a debate with the audience. Time and Place:
Det Grønlandske Hus, Løvstræde 6, 1152 Kbh. K.
Saturday 29.3. at 14-15

Supporters
Knud Højgaard Fonden
Danish Arts Foundation Project Support Committee for Performing Arts; project and touring support
The Ministry of Culture’s Culture Pool for projects between Greenland and Denmark
Aarhus Municipality’s Cultural Development Pool
Frederiksbergfonden
Hoffmann og Husmans Fond
Nordea Fonden
Danish Actors’ Association production support funds
Aage og Johanne Louis-Hansens Fond
Augustinusfonden
Københavns Kommunes Scenekunstudvalg

Premiere
March 24, 2025 at Nordatlantens Brygge

Playing periods

Copenhagen, Denmark

March 24 – April 12, 2025 at Nordatlantens Brygge School Performances Copenhagen: 10:30 am Wednesdays during the performance period

Frederiksberg

April 24-25, 2025 at Falkonergårdens Gymnasium

Aarhus

April 30 – May 3, 2025 at Filuren/Musikhuset Skoleforestillinger Copenhagen: Performed at 9.30 and 12.30 on May 2. Odense
May 7 – May 10, 2025 at Dynamo Workspace Skoleforestillinger Odense: Performed at 10.15 on May 7 and 8.

Events related to the performance THE WALKING HUMAN

AAHUS

Artistic introduction to the performance
Director Lotte Faarup talks about artistic, ethical and political considerations in the creation of “The Wandering Man”. We will discuss themes such as: privilege blindness, circular dramaturgies, managing other people’s stories, the responsibility of breaking oppression and creating a theater script on a collective basis. Time and Place:
Teaterhuset
Filuren/Musikhuset Aarhus, Thomas Jensens Allé 2, 8000 Århus C
Wednesday 30.4. at 18.15-18.45 Free withticket purchase purchase of a ticket to the performance
Saturday 3.5. at 16.15-16.45 Free with purchase of a ticket to the performance purchase of tickets for the performance

Historical criticism from the stage
Dramaturg Naja Dyrendom Graugaard and director Lotte Faarup talk about artistic, ethical and political considerations in the creation of “The Wandering Man”. What obligation lies in working with historical themes from a critical angle? What can the theater do in this context in relation to its physical, present and sensual format? Time and Place:
Det Grønlandske Hus Århus, Dalgas Avenue 52A, 8000 Århus C – with Naja Dyrendom Graugaard
Friday 28.3. at 19-20.30 Free for all

About creating collectively
In this artist talk, the performers in “The Wandering Man” talk about collective artistic processes. Topics such as ownership and participation in the performance’s narrative, personal engagement, political indignation and the use of the body as a physical archive of experience will be touched upon. Afterwards, there will be time for questions from the audience. The conversation will be moderated by the show’s dramaturg Naja Dyrendom Graugaard. Time and Place:
Teaterhuset Filuren/Musikhuset, Thomas Jensens Allé 2, 8000 Aarhus C
with Hanne Bjerre Lassen
Friday 2.5. at 11-11.30 am Free with ticket purchase Teaterhuset Filuren/Musikhuset, Thomas Jensens Allé 2, 8000 Aarhus C
with Hanne Bjerre Lassen, Lotte Faarup and cast
Friday 2.5. at 14-14.30 Free with purchase of ticket to the performance purchase of a ticket to the performance

Events in connection with the performance THE WANDERING MAN

ODENSE

Artistic introduction to the performance
Director Lotte Faarup talks about artistic, ethical and political considerations in the creation of “The Wandering Man”. We will discuss themes such as: privilege blindness, circular dramaturgies, managing other people’s stories, the responsibility of breaking oppression and creating a theater script on a collective basis. Time and Place:
Det Grønlandske Hus, Nordatlantisk Hus, Nordatlantisk Promenade 1, 5000 Odense C
Saturday 10.5. at 18.45-19.15 Free with ticket purchase Dynamo. purchase of tickets for the performance Dynamo Workspace, Finlandskaj 6, 5000 Odense C
Wednesday 7.5. kl. 10-10.15 Free with purchase of tickets for the performance purchase of tickets for the performance
Thursday 8.5. kl. 10-10.15 Free if you buy a ticket for the performance purchase of tickets for the performance

About creating collectively
In this artist talk, the performers in “The Wandering Man” talk about collective artistic processes. Topics such as ownership and participation in the performance’s narrative, personal engagement, political indignation and the use of the body as a physical archive of experience will be touched upon. Afterwards, there will be time for questions from the audience. The conversation will be moderated by the show’s dramaturg Naja Dyrendom Graugaard. Time and Place:
Dynamo Workspace
Friday 9.5. at 21.00-21.30 Free with ticket purchase . purchase of a ticket to the performance