I admire Strindberg’s inner cosmos in what must be one of the earliest post-modern pieces of drama. I used the classic’s strong feministic voice and adapted the play to take place in present day Helsinki. I wanted to challenge the limit of how far I could take the story to feel completely contemporary without loosing the beautiful structure of themes in the original. We worked out ensemble-generated choreography and combined dramatic scenes with strong physical movement material. The rehearsals incorporated field-trips with the suggestion premise of seeing the reality through the eyes of the play.
This project came out of the need to adapt a classical piece of drama into something recogizable to present day Finnish individuals. The original drama by Strindberg is vividly set in his times and his cosmos. I asked myself how this cosmos relates to me what do I pick up on and what not? Where are the equals of the characters in my surroundings? So I realized that the Officer working in the stables must be the one working in a fast food restaurant and Agnes – lifes fire, must be a performance artist trying to combine being an artist and being a mother / house wife at the same time. The play hosts the mystical phonebooth that rings every now and then but the door is locked so nobody can answer.
The Dream Play – 90 minutes dramatic play with song, performance and dance material.
Film on Vimeo (password: annamariafilms)
Download PDF here.
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