Scan Magazine | Special Theme | Nordic Culture –Culture Centres in Norway
The magical sunrise concert with Eva Weel Skram at the World’s End last summer was a unique experience for the 2,600 people attending. Photo: Cato Ingebritsen.
Experience a magical sunrise concert like no other, on the edge of Norway Nøtterøy Kulturhus wants to move the audience by creating great, unique cultural experiences in Norway. With everything from a magical sunrise concert outdoors in idyllic settings and international contemporary-style circus performances to the more traditional productions on the programme, the regional culture house presents entertainment in different genres, where quality and innovation are always the focus. By Ingrid Opstad | Photos: Nøtterøy Kulturhus
This summer, Nøtterøy Kulturhus invites guests along to once again enjoy a magical sunrise concert on the edge of Norway. Located on the southern tip of Tjøme, the World’s End is a fantastic recreation area with beautiful surrounding landscapes and a view of the fjord – the perfect setting to welcome the sunrise with captivating music by one of Norway’s most beautiful voices, Ingebjørg Bratland, while being at what feels like the edge of the world. Here, by the archipelago, with the great, blue ocean right by your side, Ingebjørg Bratland will be joined by string instruments to create an extraordinary happening for the early risers. “The sunrise concert starts bright and early, at four in the morning, and I can guarantee a magical atmosphere while the sun starts to show its face about ten minutes into the concert – a unique experience and an unmissable event, which 68 | Issue 123 | April 2019
is hard to describe,” says the director at Nøtterøy Kulturhus, Einar M. Schistad. “Last year’s concert with Eva Weel Skram was the first time we arranged it, and it ended up a big success and a beautiful morning we will never forget. Now we have the pleasure of once again inviting guests to a new, spectacular happening,” he says. With 2,600 tickets sold last time, quite a few of the audience members made a night of it, sleeping under the stars in sleeping bags. “We have already sold 800 tickets this year, so we are expecting it to be yet another spectacular event. I don’t think there is any better way to wake up,” says Schistad, explaining that the artist was chosen very consciously, in order for that magic mood to be guaranteed. The strings help to reinforce this feeling and create a relaxing and tranquil setting for a wonderful morning by the fjord.
Quality and innovation in focus With the aim to be a culture house that offers something for everyone, Nøtterøy Kulturhus provides great diversity in the programme, ranging from famous artists to unknown performers and unique productions covering all the different performing arts. But the focus is, and always has been, on quality and innovation. “When Nøtterøy Kulturhus was built in 1994, the idea was to create a place for local cultural life. This is still a part of what we do, but we have developed into what I believe is one of the leading cultural centres in Norway, by working both
Director at Nøtterøy Kulturhus, Einar M. Schistad.