Reykjavík Grapevine - 20.05.2016, Page 39

The Reykjavík Arts Festival is a breath of fresh summer
air to the city’s cultural scene, bringing together a rich
mix of local and imported art, dance and theatre each
May. The programme positively bulges with openings,
performances and events, and it can all blow by very
quickly—so here’s our team’s quick ‘n’ dirty guide to ten
events you shouldn’t miss.
May 21 — FlexN
This festival opens with an energetic performance from
this troupe of 15 dancers, who combine different styles,
from Brooklyn to Jamaica, into a fluid, expressive take on
street dance. JR
Brim, 20:00, Price: 5.500 ISK.
May 21-June 5 — Phoenix
Some artwork aims to extend the attendee’s role from pas-
sive viewer to an active participant. The Reykjavík edition of
Phoenix, by the Wunderkind group, promises to provide an
interactive sensory experience using guides and technol-
ogy to walk people through an immersive living artwork. JR
Snarfarahöfn, Elliðavogi, 14:30-16:30, Price: 2.500 ISK (book in
advance)
May 21 — Shift
I always describe abstract painting vs. representational
painting as similar to poetry vs. prose: with the former of
each, you don’t have to worry about following the plot as
much as enjoying the ride. So, as poetry is defined as much
by its white spaces as words, so too are the mysteriously
monochromatic paintings in Hulda Stefánsdóttir’s new ex-
hibition, ‘Shift’. Give your art-muscles a little flex. GDF
May 21 — The Inner
Life of a Hay Bale
This exhibit promises to explore the microcosmic world of
life forms coexisting within bales of hay. The artist does
so through the familiar mediums of drawing and sculp-
ture. What’s more, however, she also includes one of the art
forms most often overlooked and underrated in “high art”:
animation. This will be nothing like a Saturday morning
cartoon. GDF
May 22 — Rhythm Knitting
Steinunn Sigurðardóttir, the cover star of our Artsfest is-
sue, takes knitting practise to places you might not expect.
This workshop, made in collaboration with Sugarcubes
drummer Sigtryggur Baldursson, focuses on the rhythmic
nature of knitting, and promises to expand your idea of
what knitting can be, whether you’re a beginner or an ex-
pert. JR
The Nordic House, 16:00-19:00, free (book in advance)
May 22 — Cello, My
Heart’s Barometer
Whether giving up on your childhood cello lessons is your
life’s great regret or you can’t honestly remember what a
cello sounds like: it’s time you listen to some more cello. If
you appreciate the sombre, emotive tones a single cello can
produce, multiply it by nine and add a singer to get some
glimpse of the deep, auditory beauty of this performance.
GDF
Laugarneskirkja, 16:00, Price: 4.700 ISK.
May 23-June 4 —
Dead Man's Cellphone
This play by Sarah Ruhl is her first to be performed on Ice-
landic soil, and has been translated into Icelandic especially
for the occasion. The premise begins simply enough—with
a stranger answering an annoying ringing cellphone, left
on the table next to them. But where it goes from there…
well. You’ll find out. If you speak Icelandic. JR
Tjarnarbíó, 20:30, Price: 4.400 ISK.
June 2 — Epic Saga of
Mankind’s Mistakes
Not shying away from the big issues, this work of music and
poetry by Hallveig Rúnarsdóttir, Erpur Eyvindarson, Hil-
mar Örn Hilmarsson and Bjarni Frímann Bjarnason seeks
to examine human progress on a grand scale. I’d bring your
own popcorn. JR
Gamla bíó, 20:00, 4.500-5.500 ISK
June 4 — UR_
Anna Þorvaldsdóttir’s chamber opera took two years to de-
velop, in Greenland, Iceland, Norway and Germany. Now, it
comes to one of these homes for an Icelandic premiere at
Harpa. We’re promised a grand audio-visual construction
that uses mankind’s relentless need to search as a launch-
pad. JR
Harpa Norðurljós, 20:00, Price: 5.500 ISK
June 5 — The Mosaic Project
Terri Lyne Carrington is one of the world’s leading jazz
drummers, and a triple Grammy winner. She’ll play Harpa
with a specially-assembled seven-part band. What more do
you need to know? See you there! JR
Harpa Eldborg, 20:00, Price: 6.900-7.900 ISK
Picks by John Rogers (JR) & Grayson Del Faro (GDF).
RHYTHM KNITTING
CELLO, MY HEART'S BAROMETER
DEAD MAN'S CELLPHONE
THE INNER LIFE OF A HAY BALE
SHIFT
UR
Fancy:
Grapevine’s Picks
From The 2016
Reykjavík Arts Festival
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