15 great English-language acts at Sweden's Fringe festivals
Lovers of the arts, rejoice! Fringe festivals are once again upon us, hitting Gothenburg from September 1st-4th and Stockholm from September 5th-10th. We take a look at our favourite acts in English.
This year marks the 70th anniversary of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world’s largest arts festival and an inspiration for other festivals around the world. In true fringe spirit, festivals in Bergen, Gothenburg, Reykjavik*, and Stockholm came together to launch the Nordic Fringe Network, a new platform for international artists to reach Nordic audiences. In such a special year to celebrate performance art, we’re excited to see so many great acts coming to Sweden. Here are some of our favourites:
*Note: Unfortunately, the launch of Reykjavik Fringe Festival had to be postponed to 2018.
GOTHENBURG
Do you speak emoji? Dan Simpson does, and this year the poet comes to Gothenburg armed with his smart and witty humour, and a selfie stick. A seasoned performer, he brings spoken word to a range of audiences, working in schools, running creative writing workshops, and collaborating with scientists in projects that fuse poetry and science. Artificial Ineloquence is an engaging and contemporary stand-up poetry show which focuses on the screens and machines that rule our lives, the rise of robots, and the inevitable A.I. takeover of the world.
When: 8pm, September 1st; 5pm, September 2nd; 8pm, September 3rd
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Henriksberg, Stigbergsliden 7, Gothenburg
Price: 100 kronor ($12)
Photo: Dan Simpson/Gothenburg Fringe Festival
Scottish comedian Chris Henry is a man on a twisting mission. His show Balloonatics has been a massive hit back in the UK, with sold-out performances at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It was the runner-up for the Children’s Event Award at Perth Fringe World 2017, and is guaranteed fun for children and adults alike.
When: 2pm, September 1st; 2pm, September 2nd; 1pm, September 3rd
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Sjöfartsmuseet Föreläsningssalen, Karl Johansgatan 1-3, Gothenburg
Price: 80 kronor ($10)
Photo: Chris Henry/Gothenburg Fringe Festival
Irish performer Amanda Doherty’s solo show, subtitled “The Bodyless Woman”, explores the theme of Magdalene Laundries in Ireland, religious institutions supported by the government where "fallen women" were imprisoned and confined against their will. It questions issues of bodily autonomy and governments’ ownership of the female body. Hear Much/Say Little came to Sweden for Stockholm Fringe 2016 as a work-in-progress showing and was nominated for the festival’s “Expect the Unexpected” Award. Her previous solo work ‘Inheritance’ was nominated for several international awards, and won the “Festival Spirit” Award at Stockholm Fringe 2015. Originally from Derry, Doherty has trained in London and New York and has been considered one of Ireland’s foremost young actors.
When: 4pm,September 1st; 8pm, September 2nd; 7pm, September 3rd
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Göteborgs Dramatiska Teater, Stigbergsliden 5B, Gothenburg
Price: 100 kronor ($12)
Photo: Andrei Runcanu
My First Ten Sexual Failures and Other Stories About Growing Up
Andy Silverwood is a British actor and comedian who has travelled the world with his solo performance about sex, relationships, coffee, and all other things people are expected to have when they grow up. Silverwood has come to Sweden before, and took home the “Expect the Unexpected” Award at Stockholm Fringe 2014 for ‘Fragility’, his partnership with James Grice. My First Ten Sexual Failures was voted the number one act to see at Barnstaple Fringe TheatreFest 2016 and has had sold out showings at Fringe festivals in Stockholm, Prague, Perth, and Adelaide.
When: 8.30pm, September 2nd (Bengans); 6:30pm, September 3rd (Henriksberg)
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Bengans, Stigbergstorget 1, Gothenburg; Henriksberg, Stigbergsliden 7, Gothenburg
Price: 80 kronor ($10)
Photo: Andy Silverwood/Gothenburg Fringe Festival
Quaestio is the latest and last work of renowned choreographer Thomas Michael Voss, who passed away in March shortly after the show’s premiere at Resolution 2017, the UK’s biggest festival for new dance. It explores disability, masculinity, and bullying, themes personal to Voss, who grew up in a football-fanatic family. Voss’ main inspiration in creating the show, however, was meeting comedian Joshua Robertson, who survived an accident at age 11 and has lived with brain injuries since. In dance, Robertson puts aside his jokes to explore issues of disability in movement and body language. He is joined by four professional dancers, a soprano, a violinist, a pianist, and 18-year-old harpist Hero Douglas, who also composed the original score. Gothenburg is the first international performance of the show.
When: 3pm, September 1st; 12.30pm, September 2nd; 6.30pm, September 3rd
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Frilagret, Heurlins Plats 1, Gothenburg
Price: 50 kronor ($6)
Photo: Quaestio/Gothenburg Fringe Festival
STOCKHOLM
Therese Sandin, Josefin Johansson and Pernilla Hammargren don't have much more than three things in common: they are women, Swedish, and comedians. Seasoned performers with experience abroad, they have individual performances in Swedish throughout the festival, and come together for a 60-minute stand-up showcase in English on September 9th.
When: 8.15pm, September 9th
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Bonden Bar, Bondegatan 1D, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price.
Photo: Bag of Swedes
Black Revolutionaries Don’t Drop from the Moon
This performance explores themes of political struggle, taking inspiration from activist Assata Shakur, a prominent female member of the Black Panthers and the Black Liberation Army. The title is part of a famous quote from her autobiography, which reads: “Black revolutionaries do not drop from the moon. We are created by our conditions. Shaped by our oppression.”
When: 5.30pm, September 6th
Duration: 70 minutes
Where: Teater Tribunalen, Hornsgatan 92, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Mahoyo
Eleanor Conway’s Walk of Shame
The critically-acclaimed Walk of Shame comes to Stockholm on its extended tour. It is Eleanor Conway’s first full hour of stand-up, although she has been performing as a comedian since 2010. She has travelled the world working as a music presenter, and in Walk of Shame tells of the extreme decisions that have led her to Asia, into porn, through Tinder, and back.
When: 9.30pm, September 6th
Duration: 70 minutes
Where: Bonden Bar, Bondegatan 1D, 116 23 Stockholm, Sweden
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Jamie Rowan
Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Cinewest brings us a selection of the best Australian short films, curated for Sydney Fringe Festival 2017.
When: 3pm, September 10th
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Zita Folkets Bio, Birger Jarlsgatan 37, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Sydney Fringe Festival
Architect and dancer Sofia Kondylia performs a theatrical synopsis of her “Architecture+Dance” research into the coupling of the two arts in the creative process. In this interactive lecture performance, she explores the creation of spaces through bodies’ movement.
When: 9pm, September 7th; 6pm, September 8th
Duration: 35 minutes
Where: Teater Tre, Rosenlundsgatan 12, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Mariana Bolano/Manos Garyfallou/PV
Benno Steinegger spent two years interviewing a wide range of people, from his physician to a shaman to his mother, asking them to describe him. The results led him on a journey of self-discovery and reconstruction of his own identity. In this performance, the artist questions the boundaries of his identity, and explores the possibility of deep personal transformation.
When: 8pm, September 7th
Duration: 50 minutes
Where: StDH T-huset, Valhallavägen 193, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Leonardo Mazzi/Gregor Khuen Belasi
I will not tell you our love story (it will die with us, as it should)
This performance will only happen once. It revolves around a love story that lived and died. As the exchanged messages filled up the mobile’s memory space, they were gradually deleted. First, the “okays” and “see you at homes”, then the ones about daily life. Finally, the undeletable messages of love and sex, the remains, will be read aloud and permanently deleted during the performance.
When: 1.45pm, September 7th
Duration: 90 minutes
Where: Vita Havet Konstfack, LM Ericssons väg 14, Stockholm
Price: Free
Photo: Ana Correa
In this video installation, Tehran-based Zahra Zavareh explores Iranian mythology and poetry to tell a tale of love refugees in battle against nationalism. The story is told through the legend of Rustam, immortalized by Persian poet Ferdowsi in his Epic of Kings Shahnameh.
When: 1pm, September 10th
Duration: 4 minutes
Where: Zita Folkets Bio, Birger Jarlsgatan 37, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Zahra Zavareh
Originally created as part of It’s All in Your Head, a project exploring the theme of mental health, Love and then Lighthouses follows Sheena as she tells the tale of a little boat thrown off course by a storm. A show about how to survive teen angst, and make it through the pitch black night.
When: 5.30pm, September 8th; 3.30pm, September 9th
Duration: 50 minutes
Where: Teater Tribunalen, Hornsgatan 92, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Marianne Chua
Maria Shehata is an award-winning Egyptian-American comedian, who moved to London from LA for no other reason than love. The move – and all that ensued – are the inspiration for this critically-acclaimed show.
When: 8.15pm, September 8th; 9.30pm, September 9th
Duration: 55 minutes
Where: Bonden Bar, Bondegatan 1D, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Christian Dyson
For more acts in English, Swedish and other languages, have a look here and here.
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This year marks the 70th anniversary of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world’s largest arts festival and an inspiration for other festivals around the world. In true fringe spirit, festivals in Bergen, Gothenburg, Reykjavik*, and Stockholm came together to launch the Nordic Fringe Network, a new platform for international artists to reach Nordic audiences. In such a special year to celebrate performance art, we’re excited to see so many great acts coming to Sweden. Here are some of our favourites:
*Note: Unfortunately, the launch of Reykjavik Fringe Festival had to be postponed to 2018.
GOTHENBURG
Do you speak emoji? Dan Simpson does, and this year the poet comes to Gothenburg armed with his smart and witty humour, and a selfie stick. A seasoned performer, he brings spoken word to a range of audiences, working in schools, running creative writing workshops, and collaborating with scientists in projects that fuse poetry and science. Artificial Ineloquence is an engaging and contemporary stand-up poetry show which focuses on the screens and machines that rule our lives, the rise of robots, and the inevitable A.I. takeover of the world.
When: 8pm, September 1st; 5pm, September 2nd; 8pm, September 3rd
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Henriksberg, Stigbergsliden 7, Gothenburg
Price: 100 kronor ($12)
Photo: Dan Simpson/Gothenburg Fringe Festival
Scottish comedian Chris Henry is a man on a twisting mission. His show Balloonatics has been a massive hit back in the UK, with sold-out performances at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It was the runner-up for the Children’s Event Award at Perth Fringe World 2017, and is guaranteed fun for children and adults alike.
When: 2pm, September 1st; 2pm, September 2nd; 1pm, September 3rd
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Sjöfartsmuseet Föreläsningssalen, Karl Johansgatan 1-3, Gothenburg
Price: 80 kronor ($10)
Photo: Chris Henry/Gothenburg Fringe Festival
Irish performer Amanda Doherty’s solo show, subtitled “The Bodyless Woman”, explores the theme of Magdalene Laundries in Ireland, religious institutions supported by the government where "fallen women" were imprisoned and confined against their will. It questions issues of bodily autonomy and governments’ ownership of the female body. Hear Much/Say Little came to Sweden for Stockholm Fringe 2016 as a work-in-progress showing and was nominated for the festival’s “Expect the Unexpected” Award. Her previous solo work ‘Inheritance’ was nominated for several international awards, and won the “Festival Spirit” Award at Stockholm Fringe 2015. Originally from Derry, Doherty has trained in London and New York and has been considered one of Ireland’s foremost young actors.
When: 4pm,September 1st; 8pm, September 2nd; 7pm, September 3rd
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Göteborgs Dramatiska Teater, Stigbergsliden 5B, Gothenburg
Price: 100 kronor ($12)
Photo: Andrei Runcanu
My First Ten Sexual Failures and Other Stories About Growing Up
Andy Silverwood is a British actor and comedian who has travelled the world with his solo performance about sex, relationships, coffee, and all other things people are expected to have when they grow up. Silverwood has come to Sweden before, and took home the “Expect the Unexpected” Award at Stockholm Fringe 2014 for ‘Fragility’, his partnership with James Grice. My First Ten Sexual Failures was voted the number one act to see at Barnstaple Fringe TheatreFest 2016 and has had sold out showings at Fringe festivals in Stockholm, Prague, Perth, and Adelaide.
When: 8.30pm, September 2nd (Bengans); 6:30pm, September 3rd (Henriksberg)
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Bengans, Stigbergstorget 1, Gothenburg; Henriksberg, Stigbergsliden 7, Gothenburg
Price: 80 kronor ($10)
Photo: Andy Silverwood/Gothenburg Fringe Festival
Quaestio is the latest and last work of renowned choreographer Thomas Michael Voss, who passed away in March shortly after the show’s premiere at Resolution 2017, the UK’s biggest festival for new dance. It explores disability, masculinity, and bullying, themes personal to Voss, who grew up in a football-fanatic family. Voss’ main inspiration in creating the show, however, was meeting comedian Joshua Robertson, who survived an accident at age 11 and has lived with brain injuries since. In dance, Robertson puts aside his jokes to explore issues of disability in movement and body language. He is joined by four professional dancers, a soprano, a violinist, a pianist, and 18-year-old harpist Hero Douglas, who also composed the original score. Gothenburg is the first international performance of the show.
When: 3pm, September 1st; 12.30pm, September 2nd; 6.30pm, September 3rd
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Frilagret, Heurlins Plats 1, Gothenburg
Price: 50 kronor ($6)
Photo: Quaestio/Gothenburg Fringe Festival
STOCKHOLM
Therese Sandin, Josefin Johansson and Pernilla Hammargren don't have much more than three things in common: they are women, Swedish, and comedians. Seasoned performers with experience abroad, they have individual performances in Swedish throughout the festival, and come together for a 60-minute stand-up showcase in English on September 9th.
When: 8.15pm, September 9th
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Bonden Bar, Bondegatan 1D, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price.
Photo: Bag of Swedes
Black Revolutionaries Don’t Drop from the Moon
This performance explores themes of political struggle, taking inspiration from activist Assata Shakur, a prominent female member of the Black Panthers and the Black Liberation Army. The title is part of a famous quote from her autobiography, which reads: “Black revolutionaries do not drop from the moon. We are created by our conditions. Shaped by our oppression.”
When: 5.30pm, September 6th
Duration: 70 minutes
Where: Teater Tribunalen, Hornsgatan 92, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Mahoyo
Eleanor Conway’s Walk of Shame
The critically-acclaimed Walk of Shame comes to Stockholm on its extended tour. It is Eleanor Conway’s first full hour of stand-up, although she has been performing as a comedian since 2010. She has travelled the world working as a music presenter, and in Walk of Shame tells of the extreme decisions that have led her to Asia, into porn, through Tinder, and back.
When: 9.30pm, September 6th
Duration: 70 minutes
Where: Bonden Bar, Bondegatan 1D, 116 23 Stockholm, Sweden
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Jamie Rowan
Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Cinewest brings us a selection of the best Australian short films, curated for Sydney Fringe Festival 2017.
When: 3pm, September 10th
Duration: 60 minutes
Where: Zita Folkets Bio, Birger Jarlsgatan 37, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Sydney Fringe Festival
Architect and dancer Sofia Kondylia performs a theatrical synopsis of her “Architecture+Dance” research into the coupling of the two arts in the creative process. In this interactive lecture performance, she explores the creation of spaces through bodies’ movement.
When: 9pm, September 7th; 6pm, September 8th
Duration: 35 minutes
Where: Teater Tre, Rosenlundsgatan 12, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Mariana Bolano/Manos Garyfallou/PV
Benno Steinegger spent two years interviewing a wide range of people, from his physician to a shaman to his mother, asking them to describe him. The results led him on a journey of self-discovery and reconstruction of his own identity. In this performance, the artist questions the boundaries of his identity, and explores the possibility of deep personal transformation.
When: 8pm, September 7th
Duration: 50 minutes
Where: StDH T-huset, Valhallavägen 193, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Leonardo Mazzi/Gregor Khuen Belasi
I will not tell you our love story (it will die with us, as it should)
This performance will only happen once. It revolves around a love story that lived and died. As the exchanged messages filled up the mobile’s memory space, they were gradually deleted. First, the “okays” and “see you at homes”, then the ones about daily life. Finally, the undeletable messages of love and sex, the remains, will be read aloud and permanently deleted during the performance.
When: 1.45pm, September 7th
Duration: 90 minutes
Where: Vita Havet Konstfack, LM Ericssons väg 14, Stockholm
Price: Free
Photo: Ana Correa
In this video installation, Tehran-based Zahra Zavareh explores Iranian mythology and poetry to tell a tale of love refugees in battle against nationalism. The story is told through the legend of Rustam, immortalized by Persian poet Ferdowsi in his Epic of Kings Shahnameh.
When: 1pm, September 10th
Duration: 4 minutes
Where: Zita Folkets Bio, Birger Jarlsgatan 37, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Zahra Zavareh
Originally created as part of It’s All in Your Head, a project exploring the theme of mental health, Love and then Lighthouses follows Sheena as she tells the tale of a little boat thrown off course by a storm. A show about how to survive teen angst, and make it through the pitch black night.
When: 5.30pm, September 8th; 3.30pm, September 9th
Duration: 50 minutes
Where: Teater Tribunalen, Hornsgatan 92, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Marianne Chua
Maria Shehata is an award-winning Egyptian-American comedian, who moved to London from LA for no other reason than love. The move – and all that ensued – are the inspiration for this critically-acclaimed show.
When: 8.15pm, September 8th; 9.30pm, September 9th
Duration: 55 minutes
Where: Bonden Bar, Bondegatan 1D, Stockholm
Price: 120 kronor ($14), concessions half-price
Photo: Christian Dyson
For more acts in English, Swedish and other languages, have a look here and here.
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