Norwegian and Finnish traditional songs, dances, and rituals keep Winter Spirits from overtaking us. Grief, darkness, and depression are balanced with joy, clarity, and engagement. A Nordic balance of extremes for Winter Solstice.
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Kari Tauring and friends present an interactive ritual performance, a tradition at the Bryant Lake Bowl Theater. Music, movement, and poetry make for a compelling and interactive journey into darkness in order to find the light.
Winter in the Northlands always holds uncertainty. Below freezing temperatures and almost no sunlight create the need for community connection alongside the desire to isolate and sleep. Cold and dark come to us still. We have no more control than our ancestors did, though possibly better odds for survival in these modern times.
Some years are harder than others, and we have had a string of hard ones. This year there is an extra layer of grief and fear as we see human rights dissolve and friends and neighbors targeted for persecution. What did our ancestors do in the bleakest of times? What does it mean to balance with extremes?
Gathering in community is the most ancient way to hold one another as we learn to embrace the dark and cold without letting our light inside go out. Ancient runes for Ice, Need Fire, and Community hold these lessons. We explore them in breath and stretching. Traditional songs and dances hold ritual actions to appease these winter spirits. We sing and dance together to embody their wisdom. In darkness we hear the runos, the poems, the poets, who help us make meaning of things. The smell of evergreen lifts our spirits. We eat and drink and make toasts., remembering those who have passed, celebrating us here and now, summoning the joy of jultide to carry us through.
Kari Tauring and Carol Sersland share their Norwegian traditions in song and dance. Jack Tauring-Traxler and Cheré Suzette Bergeron bring musical texture to the dark night. Lynette Reini-Grandell and Morrey Nellis carry on the ancient tradition of Finnish poetry with wisdom words for today.
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Tickets are $12 in Advance / $14 at the Door. Doors open at 2pm. Online ticket sales end at 1pm.
Our full restaurant and bar service is available in the theater! Order from your seat and enjoy the show, we'll take care of the rest.