Name: The Annual Ibsen Lecture: Ibsen Without Lines
Start: 2025-11-27T17:00:00+01:00
Location: Professorboligen

Exploring the transformation of Henrik Ibsen’s prose dramas into a realm where the spoken word is absent presents fascinating questions about adaptation and interpretation. What unfolds when these rich narratives are conveyed through the silent power of dance, and what challenges do theatre directors face in this process? This transition poses both obstacles and creative possibilities, as directors strive to maintain the emotive force of the original works while embracing the unique expression of the ballet genre.
Marit Moum Aune, who is currently a house director at the Norwegian National Ballet and will assume the role of director at the National Theatre in 2027, will offer her insights into these transformative processes in this year’s Annual Ibsen Lecture. Moum Aune will draw upon her long career as director and dramaturg, with a special focus on her ballet adaptations of Ghosts (2014), Hedda Gabler (2017) and The Wild Duck (2024), all produced by the National Ballet.

Marit Moum Aune is recognised as one of Norway’s most acclaimed directors. Her extensive career spans classical and contemporary drama, opera, comedy, and television, with a long list of directing credits to her name. She made her debut as director and choreographer with the Norwegian National Ballet in 2014 with Ghosts — Ibsen’s Gengangere, followed by Hedda Gabler in 2017. In spring 2024, her Ibsen trilogy was completed with The Wild Duck.
In spring 2018, Moum Aune enjoyed great success with The Lady from the Sea, performed by The Norwegian Ibsen Company at The Coronet Theatre in London. The success was repeated in spring 2023 at the same venue, this time with Strindberg’s The Dance of Death, produced by the National Theatre of Norway. Other notable achievements include Tony Kushner’s Angels in America at the National Theatre in 2018, Peer Gynt at Gålå in summer 2019, and the television series Made in Oslo (2022) and Netflix series Billionaire Island (2024).
Marit Moum Aune has served as Resident Director of the Norwegian National Ballet since the 2019/2020 season, and will assume the role of director at the National Theatre of Norway in 2027.

Please note that this seminar will be streamed. You need to register for remote participation at https://nettskjema.no/a/567223, no later than 26 November. A Zoom link will be sent on the day of the seminar.