La skogen leve
La Skogen Leve (Let the Forest Live) marked Narvik musikkskolens 40th Anniversary and was in collaboration with; music, vocal, dance and drama students; some parents; the school’s teachers; and with the school’s administrators also performing: one hundred and fifty people all together.
Text: Arne Kildal Music: Stein Skyene
Teatersalen, Folkets Hus, Narvik 19:00 Wednesday 2nd June and 19:00 Thursday 3rd June 1993
School’s principal: Jan Claussen
Head of Culture: Bjørn Selnes
| Choreography and instruction: | Fiona Jane Ellingsen |
| Vocal instruction: | Anne Søyland |
| Conductor: | Trond Wika |
| Orchestra Arrangement: | Sigfred Olsen |
| Sound: | Øystein Nilsen |
| Lighting: | Bjørnar Sletteng |
| Costumes and Make-up: | Parents |
| Scenography: | Parents |
Orchestra
| Instrument | Name |
| Violin: | Britt Elise Forshaug |
| Ragnhild Furebotten | |
| Kathrine Dalmo | |
| Kristin Jacobsen | |
| Mette Ness Pedersen | |
| Thea Mari Sagfjord | |
| Janne Bjørnbakk | |
| Ingrid Olsen | |
| Siri Sjåfjell | |
| Lise Sjåfjell | |
| Gerd Ustad | |
| Cello: | Stine Fagertun |
| Contrabass: | Charles Garden Hansen |
| Flute: | Camilla Steine Hansen |
| Sigmund Forshaug | |
| Clarinet: | Hanne Randi Nylund |
| Kine Malene Hagen | |
| Renate Hestnes | |
| Saxophone: | Line Pettersen |
| Trumpet: | Bjørn Olav Karlsen |
| Baritone: | Roger Svenningdal |
| Piano: | Annette Olden Nedrebø |
| Percussion: | Tord Andreassen |
| Bjørn Harald Hansen |
Vocal
| Role | Name |
| School children: | Marie Loise Reijnow |
| Kaya Herstad | |
| Karine Larsen | |
| Margrethe Lauritzen | |
| Erling Malm | |
| Elf Queen: | Veronica Mikkelborg |
| Cathrine Borgsø | |
| Elves: | Line Iren Andreassen |
| Heidi Ruud Ellingsen | |
| Lisa Herstad | |
| Karen Strand | |
| Trees/rocks: | Marie Kolflaath Harnang |
| Siri Nilsen | |
| Simen Kjølseth | |
| Flowers: | Grethe Brækkan |
| Sigrid Brækkan | |
| Tonje Harnang | |
| Animals: | Hilde Klukstad |
| Arne Herstad | |
| Eva Irene Ursin | |
| Pollution: | Ragnhild Molund |
| Pål Ellingsen | |
| Gudmund Gulljord | |
| Jonas Reijnow |
“Let the Forest Live” was a children’s musical about saving the environment. In particular, about the thoughtless disposal of rubbish in nature and how pollution damages the ecosystem. In hindsight a timely choice for a jubilee.
The musical opened with a group of five children who decided to go out to play in their beloved forest. On the way they sing about their little paradise but take its beauty very much for granted. They then meet a clown, who gives them lollies, soft drink and popcorn. As they thoughtlessly drop their rubbish on the forest floor, the Queen of the elves suddenly appears accompanied by her small group of dancing elves.
Polluting the forest would not go unpunished, so the next time they went out to play, their visit turns into a nightmare as pollution engulfs them, killing the trees, flowers and animals in a dramatic climax. Back stage the smoke machine worked overtime bellowing out clouds of smoke and lit by lightning flashes, gave an eerie atmosphere to the well-played movements of pollution, performed by enthusiastic black plastic covered parents, with ghost-like white faces and black eyes.
Amusingly, the climax was reported as being very dramatic and effective, so much so it terrified many of the children in the audience; which was not my intention actually.
Normally stage hands operate the smoke machine but that evening it arrived moments before the curtain went up, and thinking it can’t be that difficult to run, I pressed the button. Unknowingly, I had filled it with a little too much fluid. When pressing it for far too long, it emitted a loud hiss and an enormous cloud of smoke engulfed the terrified children who became shadowlike in a thick fog on stage. After that smoke billowed out over the audience the ghosts became children again. Full of regret, they quickly cleaned up the rubbish strewn over the forest floor.
Thankfully everything ended happily-ever-after, both on and off stage! The finale ended with the children giving a promise to always care for the forest and protect the environment. The climax was so effective that I repeated the unplanned thick fog effect the following night.
A very impressed mayor of Narvik, Odd G. Andreassen, congratulated the school principal Jan Claussen saying; “There aren’t a lot of 40 year-olds who are so plucky!” And gave the school a gift of five thousand crowns (Rølvåg, 1993). Journalist Åshild Rølvåg, remarked that this could help the school find an appropriate locality because at the time, music instruction was spread over local schools and the cinema at Frydenlund Upper Secondary. Prophetically, the mayor added that the 40th jubilee showed the school had a bright future. In hindsight he was correct. “Let the Forest Live” received invaluable help from the newly formed parents’ association which from that point on, gave enormous assistance and support to all dance recitals, musicals and student concerts in the school.
Many of the students in this production were later to become successful professionals in their own right. Heidi Ruud Ellingsen became a top musical artist in Norway, Ragnhild Furebotten, a professional musician in the group Hekla Stålstrenga, Siri Sjåfjell, a music teacher, Grethe Brækkan, a professional dancer and producer of CODA International Dance Festival and Kaya Herstad-Carney an international singer, song writer/teacher and festival director. Gudmund Gulljord went on to work as an actor with Nordland Theatre, Hålogaland Theatre and established Rødbrus Theatre. Reminiscing over the show Grethe says she can still sing all the numbers in the show to this day by heart.
Several teachers moved on to other successful careers shortly after; Anne Søyland left to sing in the Norwegian Opera Choir, Trond Wika left to work in Vefsn Community Culture School where he together with his wife Franziska Wika established Vefsn-Ensemblet, Helgeland Sinfonietta and a huge number of music productions for and with youth. Annette Olden Nedrebø left to work in Bjerkreim Culture School where she offers an impressively wide variety of cultural activities.
This page was written by Fiona Jane Ellingsen. Fiona worked as a consultant in Narvik kulturkontoret (Narvik cultural office); and later a music producer and dance teacher at Narvik musikkskole, later Narvik kulturskole (Narvik community school), from 1991 – 2006.
Cover photo is from Rølvåg, Å. (1993, 06 04). Effektfull musical. Fremover. Images are available under their respective licenses. A video is available here.
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