Saturday, September 7 ONLY: 2pm performance followed by a post-show discussion moderated by Nick Stuccio, president and producing director, FringeArts.
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"Instead of starting with politics itself, I start with a teabag." Jo Strømgren, director of The Society
"Comedic touches worthy of Peter Sellers, and a witty stream of nonsensical language." Gia Kourlas, The New York Times
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In a European society dedicated to coffee, the shocking discovery of a used teabag threatens to tear the coffee drinkers’ world apart. An investigation into a possible Asian infiltration begins and spirals out of control. Civility turns to conspiracy and fear: just how far will they go in order to track the unpatriotic traitor down and bring this evil act to justice?
The Society takes an absurd, yet all too relatable, look at our turbulent times, when the average citizen is ever more tempted to accept torture, the suppression of minorities, and other violent means to restore order. Performed in a nonsensical language and with brilliant physicality, Jo Strømgren Kompani, Norway's pre-eminent maker of contemporary physical theater and dance, has connected its darkly humorous and universal tale to audiences throughout the world.
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Past Festival shows: The European Lesson (2008), The Convent (2006)
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Direction, Script, Choreography, Set Jo Strømgren Sound Lars Årdal Lighting Stephen Rolfe Performers John Fjelnseth Brungot, Trond Fausa Aurvåg, Bartek Kaminski
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Jo Strømgren is the artistic director of the Jo Strømgren Kompani, founded in 1998. He has developed a significant personal style with a mix of theater, dance, puppets, film, and live music—wrapped in a nonsensical language frame. As a choreographer, he has been commissioned by a range of companies, from classical to contemporary. As a theater director, he has mostly been working with national and municipal theaters in Scandinavia, predominantly with plays by Henrik Ibsen. As a playwright he has written a long list of plays for theater and scripts for film.
