Solace

Numen Company and Nordland Visual Theatre

Gebert does an absolutely fantastic job of giving him movements that are so believable, so detailed and so full of character that it is sometimes difficult to remember that it is a puppet. - Lofotposten

SOLACE is a poetic performance that draws inspiration from Japanese Butoh theatre. Solace comes from the Latin "sōlātium" meaning comfort / relief. A puppeteer and a dancer are bound together by memories, in a grim desert-like landscape.

A young boy is standing alone in a dark and unknown place. Surrounded by characters he can feel but not see. Are they his protectors or his enemies? SOLACE is a visual theatre performance with enigmatic associative images, touching on the fragile relationship between caring and transforming. Solace is a new production by Uta Gebert (Germany), contemporary artist, puppeteer and artistic director of Numen Company.

Photo: Uba Gebert

Duration 55 min (no interval) Suitable from 12 years

Director, performer, concept, dolls, scenography and costumes Uta Gebert Dancer Marine Chesnais/ Mélanie Cholet/ Gabriel Hermand-Priquet Composert/music Hahn Rowe Light design Jérôme Houlès Artistic collaborator, Outside eye Gabriel Hermand-Priquet Dramaturgical consultant Ruth Mariën

Nordland Visual Theatre Geir-Ove Andersen, Preben Faye-Schjøll, Ing Randi Johansen, Tim Lucassen, Jan Erik Skarby and Anne Sørfjell

Numen Company Team in Germany
Dramaturgical consultants Geeske Otten and Meriam Bousselmi Costumes Sonia Albartus and Uta Gebert Producer, Germany Sophie Galibert Supporting Partners Silvia Brendenal; Kathrin Rachow  

Uta Gebert Samarbeidspartnere
Solace is produced by Numen Company in collaboration with Nordland Visual TheatreIn co-produksjon with TJP - Centre dramatique national d’Alsace; Schaubude Berlin; Festival Mondial des Théâtres de Marionnettes Charleville-Mézières; Figurteatret i Nordland; CCPO Oloron Sainte Marie; Le Manège de Reims- Scène Nationale; T-Werk Potsdam; Le théâtre des 4 Saisons, Gradignan; Fonds Transfabrik - French-German fund for Performing Arts

 Supported by Figurteatret i Nordland/ Nordland Fylkeskommune-Scene 8; Centre de la marionnette de Tournai (Belgium); Mouffetard - Théâtre des arts de la marionnettes (France)

TRAILER

Nordland Visual Theatre is an international production centre for puppet theatre. The theatre was established in 1991 and has a staff of 6 permanent employees, but not a permanent ensemble. Every year 5-6 performances are produced in co-production with professional performing artists/groups from home and abroad.

Nordland Visual Theatre is managed by Nordland County and is located in Lofoten, in the fishing village of Stamsund, which has about 1000 inhabitants. In the immediate vicinity of the theatre there is a grocery store, restaurant, pub, rorbu rental, art gallery and independent theatre. Stamsund Theatre Festival is also held here every year.

Numen Company is a synonym for the artistic renewal of the contemporary puppet theatre that transcends the boundaries of the genre. Over the course of the career, C.U. Gebert did cooperations with several European theatres that support and sponsor the Numen Company. Starting with a self-managed solo in 2005 up to the award Création et Expérimentation of the Institut de la Marionnette in Charleville-Mézières in 2015, the performer and scenographer incorporated a contemporary style into a form of art that is, up to today, in uenced by tradition.

C.U. Gebert uses the stage as a space for scenic experiments and artistic research, the creativity is inspired by intuition, inventive curiosity and productive spontaneity. Gebert develops a language on the stage that is marked by special visual aesthetics. An objective style of narration and a structural minimalism give each of the productions a precise and essential touch. C.U. Gebert creates mysterious visuals of poetic beauty and an enormous power of seduction, beyond the well-known reality.

For each project different artists are invited for an artistique exchange. Long standing partners are Ulrich Kodjo-Wendt, Mark Badur, Hahn Rowe, Gabriel-Hermand-Priquet, Sonja Albartus, Paul Friedrich.