The following is from theatre director Per Kap Bech Jensen, explaining the transformation that Nordisk Teaterlaboratorium has gone through in the past years.
I want to talk about the changes that Nordisk Teaterlaboratorium – Odin Teatret has been through these days.
Because this transformation is still ongoing.
In light of recent press and publicity, I believe it is important to clarify the facts:
I have worked with Nordisk Teaterlaboratorium – Odin Teatret periodically since 2003. In 2014, I was hired as administrator alongside the director and founder at the time, Eugenio Barba. In the following years, a generational shift was under way in order to secure the future of the theatre.
In 2019, the theatre started looking for a theatre director who could succeed Eugenio Barba and move NTL forward.
The board chose me a successor, and after a year-long handover from Eugenio, I became theatre director in 2021. Eugenio stayed at the theatre as performance director. In 2022, he chose to leave the theatre and continue his own work and acting techniques around the world.
We want to change with the times
During this time, NTL has focused on how we, as a modern institution for culture, can create the best conditions – for artists, admins, collaborators, and guests.
The Danish field of culture is dynamic, and Nordisk Teaterlaboratorium wants to contribute to further developing the arts. For that reason, we also have to adapt to changing circumstances, which includes our organisational structures. As a local theatre in Holstebro, it is unusual to have permanently employed artists in the way that has previously been the case here. The size of our ensemble at the time was only exceeded by the largest performance spaces in the country.
Since I took office, the number of permanent employees has been reduced and today we no longer have permanent artists.
Instead, we want to live up to our name as a "laboratory" for theatre by supporting independent artists in both Denmark and from abroad. We have made the change from ensemble theatre to becoming a dynamic local theatre laboratory. This also means that the number of employees has been reduced, which has given us financial leeway to develop the theatre's image and create opportunities to invite different artists for shorter periods of time.
This re-structure has become the norm in the cultural landscape and makes it possible for us to have a more flexible and dynamic approach that can support a broader group of independent artists, thus contributing to furthering the arts.
As an institution, we are continuously learning and handling many new projects and initiatives – sustainability, work culture, contracts, regulations, networking, and co-creating. The list is long and our needs change over time. It is a transformation where nothing is linear and there is no definitive answer. This is what it means to work with art.
What the future brings
There is no doubt that Nordisk Teaterlaboratoium – Odin Teatret has been through a whirlwind. Eugenio Barba's approach to management and being an employer is not something that others can or should try to replicate – least of all me. Instead, with respect for the theatre's history, I want to lead us down a new path. I understand that this has been a big change, especially for those whose lives were so entwined with the theatre.
The time is right to explore new directions. Through the sense of innovation that our theatre has always had, we want to look towards the future and actively contribute to the arts – at home and around the world.
In these coming months, Nordisk Teaterlaboratorium will publish our plans for the near future, where our focus lies more on home productions, guest artist, and local collaborations.
We look forward to bringing you along with us on this journey so we can explore what a theatre laboratory can be together.
We will keep evolving. We will let in the fresh spring breeze and embrace all the opportunities that lie before us.
We will see you in Særkærparken, Holstebro!
Kind regards,
Per Kap Bech Jensen
Theatre Director, Nordisk Teaterlaboratorium
