Bergen International Festival 2015 English catalogue | Page 2

PRE FAC E B E RG E N IN T E RN AT ION A L F E ST IVA L 2 01 5 00 3 Love Enigmas Love is a perpetually fascinating theme in the world of art. The most enigmatic of our emotions, it brings us joy when we experience it set to music, recounted in literature or staged in the theatre, in dance and in film. We enjoy it because art presents us with mirror images of ourselves and of the most important driving forces in our lives. AN OPEN INVITATION TO VISIT OUR 24-HOUR OPEN BANK ON 5-6 JUNE 2015 Like a whirling maelstrom love can embrace us and suck us in and down into the undertow with unforeseeable consequences. Love unites high and low, selfishness and selflessness, selfaffirmation and self-denial, and carries us with equal portions of blindness and ruthlessness into the embrace of the waterfall, where its throat opens and makes room for the rest. Experience Bergen International Festival at our branch at Torgallmenningen 2. There will be activities and mini-concerts for children and adults. The journey into the unknown often goes through water, which since time immemorial has been an image of a boundary or transition between life and death. The destiny of love affects the mythical Orpheus, who sails to the underworld to fetch his beloved Eurydiche. The same destiny befalls Porgy, who goes to New York to seek out his Bess. Bring your family and friends and discover a different kind of bank. DNB – Always open! Free admission. Welcome! Programme details will be published on fib.no closer to the event. On the evening that the Bergen International Festival occupies the beautiful city of Bergen clothed in spring colours, we open with Gershwin’s classic Porgy & Bess, and after two weeks packed with experiences we round off with Monteverdi’s Orfeo. Together with our collaborators we aim to create a many-splendoured festival – in the truest sense of the word – impacting the lives of our audiences in unique and unmissable ways, both in venues in the city centre, the composers’ homes and elsewhere in the region. The Bergen International Festival is an event in which artists from all over the world want to participate, and they are attracted to the playfulness, creativity and tantalizing energy of the festival. The Bergen International Festival is synonymous with a high level of energy and a zest for life and art. Like an explorer, it is unafraid, yet approachable at the same time. The Bergen International Festival leaves its mark on the city and its inhabitants, disturbing their everyday schedules – bringing instead a menu to pick from of dreams, adventures and a space to breathe in new air and think new thoughts. Anders Beyer Festival director Twitter: @AndersBey W W W.F IB.N O 10599_Ann_140x230_Sponsor_utfallende_1214_tk_duplikat.indd 2 12.12.14 09.08 00 3